Attachment
by sewardsfolly
Summary: SEQUEL TO NO BOUNDARIES! Takes place four and a half years later about Padme and Anakin's life with Luke and Leia, as well as the Jedi with the changed code... peaceful, until... three chapters in, bad things start to happen. Dramatic later, fun first
1. Chapter 1

**Attachment**

Sequel to No Boundaries! To really understand this, reading No Boundaries would be good, but if this sounds interesting and No Boundaries doesn't, you can follow most of this without reading the first one. I would suggest checking out No Boundaries first though. This takes place four and a half years later, so obviously Luke and Leia are four and a half (I thought four was too young but five was too old for what I wanted…so there we go!) I guess this makes Anakin 28 and Padme around 31 but it doesn't really matter. They're still young and look the same…this is a peaceful story about their life together, until…(duh, duh, duh…what happens?) bad things begin to happen… as well as about Obi Wan and the other Jedi (who, thanks to Anakin, can now have attachments- oh the possibilities). Padme accepted the nomination as chancellor, and is still serving in that position, and Anakin is just even more famous as a great Jedi master (can you tell I love him?), and Luke and Leia are precocious and very talented Younglings, about to be assigned as Padawans. Not really much more to say, so let's see what happens with this! First couple chapters will just be peaceful and normal, then we'll get dramatic, fun fun. Enjoy, and please review.

**Disclaimer:** obviously, I don't own star wars, this is just for fun. let's continue.

beep beep beep beep

"Five more minutes," mumbled Anakin, as he reached to de-activate Artoo's alarm clock. He snuggled in to Padme's beautiful hair, and held her tightly, pouting. Padme laughed, then wiggled away from him.

"Anakin, you have to leave now to meet Obi Wan," she reminded him, all the while laughing at the adorable expression on his face. "Maybe you shouldn't have stayed up so late watching the Holo Net, honestly sometimes I feel like I have three children…"

"If I'm your child then what we did last night was very wrong," Anakin smiled at her mischievously.

"Anakin!" she exclaimed. But she loved it when he looked at her like that, and couldn't resist allowing him to pull her into a tighter embrace. They were so perfect for each other, even after all of these years they were as intensely in love as those days back on Naboo when they had first realized their love for one another. However, Padme, always the rational one, again came to her senses, as much as she wanted to snuggle back into bed with Anakin.

"You have to go Anakin, it's not courteous to make Obi Wan wait," she told him.

Suddenly, an idea struck Anakin. "But how will Luke and Leia get to the Temple if I leave early today?" He realized it was a stupid comment, seeing as every Friday Padme would bring them to the Temple instead of him, but maybe she forgot.

"Anakin, don't be silly we do this every week. You know I'll drop them off on the way to the Senate."  
"Mmff," Anakin mumbled, and he rolled off the bed. He hit the floor with a thud, and Padme laughed.

"You are ridiculous, Anakin Skywalker," she said. She walked over to her vanity and began brushing her hair, humming.

Anakin watched her- he loved to watch her brush her hair. He just loved to look at her, thinking how beautiful she was and how lucky he was. He had always loved her hair, and as she brushed it, smiling and humming, he couldn't imagine what his life would have been like without her. Everything was perfect- he knew he had been extremely lucky in the fact that the Masters had decided to change the code, instead of expel him. But when he really thought about it, it was because of him- he had proven himself, held off from the dark side and helped to defeat the Sith. He had brought balance to the Force, so he was responsible for the change in code. He smiled, proud of himself for allowing love to be a part of the Jedi life. He couldn't imagine living without it- without Padme and his children, he would never have felt complete. He walked over to her now, and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Good morning angel. Do you know how beautiful you look?" He asked, smiling at her.

She smiled back at him, blushing as she always did, so endearingly, when he complemented her. She continued to do her hair, smiling at him.

Anakin groaned and went to pull on his Jedi robes.

"I wish they didn't make these so damned hard to get on," he grumbled.

"And off," she added, and looked at him seductively.

"That was inappropriate!" He teased her, and she ran over and embraced him.

"You'd better get going, Master Skywalker, you don't want to be late."

"All right," he grumbled. "I'll see you and the twins later." With that, he turned and walked out, C-3PO attempting to shove a breakfast tray in his face as Anakin ignored him.

An hour later, Padme was ready to undertake the extremely difficult task of getting the twins awake, fed, and off to the Temple for the day. She walked into their room, and gazed on their adorable sleeping faces- she loved them so much. In a way she was glad they were being trained as Jedi- at least they would be able to defend themselves in almost any situation. But still she worried about them- how was she going to be able to cope with them _and_ Anakin out on missions, in danger all the time… But for now, she would simply have to forget those fears and enjoy them being home every night, bringing wonderful progress cards from their Youngling teachers. She worried sometimes that because of their father, too much was expected of them- how embarrassing would it be, especially for Luke, if he didn't live up to his father's reputation? Anakin was considered one of the greatest Jedi of all time- what if Luke and Leia were just… normal, good Jedi. She hoped beyond all hope that Anakin's incredible power had simply passed on to them- she didn't want them to feel at all overshadowed by their father.

She was reassured, however, by Anakin's reports. Apparently they were very advanced for their age, and already the Skywalker family was a name to be known throughout the galaxy. She sighed- was this a good thing or a bad thing? Did she really want her kids to grow up like this, known throughout the galaxy, with so much expected of them? She sighed, and walked over to kiss each child's forehead.

"Time to wake up," she said to them peacefully as they blinked open their eyes. Leia's were chocolate brown, matching Padme's- her long brown hair made her look like almost a miniature of her mother. Luke had inherited his father's genes- beautiful blue eyes and sandy blond hair. Padme smiled as her children's eyes peered up at her.

"Where's daddy?" Luke asked, confused. Normally Anakin woke them up.

"Today's Friday, Luke. You remember that daddy goes early to the temple on Friday," she reminded him. Padme laughed, amused that the once so unpredictable Anakin Skywalker now had a weekly routine. It made being a Jedi Master sound like a regular 9 to 5 job. Fridays are when he goes early to work, Monday's he has to stay late for the Council meeting. He hadn't been on a mission in four years, instead teaching Younglings and working on Coruscant. The only times he left the planet were family vacations and visits back to Naboo. He had asked specifically to be able to stay with his family, but Padme knew he was itching to go on another adventure. She was actually going to tell him that if he wanted to go on a mission for a few months, she would be ok with the kids for a while. She knew he would never leave unless she encouraged him too, and she wanted him to be having adventures still, as long as he came home safely. Now, during a time of peace, she wasn't as worried about any mission he might have- the missions now were mostly to capture smugglers or small-scale criminals- none that were a match for a Jedi Master. She knew that basically no one in the galaxy could hurt Anakin in these times- unless there was another Sith out there that none of them knew about.

"What's for breakfast?" Leia asked eagerly.

"3PO made it," Padme replied. "Let's get you two dressed." She sighed, knowing that it was easier said than done. The second the twins were awake, they were full of life. Already Luke and Leia were running around the room, giggling, and sparring with their training sabers. She tried to catch them and pull on their adorable Youngling tunics, but the Jedi reflexes were too much for her. They both ran out of the room and stood at the counter to get breakfast.

"I don't like eggs!" Leia said.

"I love eggs," said Luke, and he took all of Leia's eggs onto his plate.

"Hey!" Leia sniffled, "Those are mine! Luke took all of my breakfast, mommy! It's not fair, we're each entitled to our own breakfast." Leia tended to have a great sense of moral correctness, especially when it came to herself- everyone commented on how she sounded just like Padme in these instances. If she wanted to, she could be a great politician someday, patient and wise. Luke, on the other hand, took after his father, running around the room with the eggs, giggling, his joy for life evident in his eyes.  
Padme took this chance to sneak up on Leia and pull off her nightclothes.

"Hehe, Leia's naked, ewww," Luke giggled, walking towards them. Padme seized this opportunity to also undress her son.

"So are you, laser brain," Leia answered.

"Don't call your brother names, Leia," Padme scolded, half-heartedly, as she pulled on their clothes for the day. "Now go eat," Padme said, getting some breakfast for herself.

Miraculously, half and hour later, they all were walking into the Jedi Temple. Padme got many greetings, everyone commending her on her latest work. She had ultimately accepted the nomination as Chancellor, and was very popular. She had some of the highest approval ratings of all time. Some people claimed it was just because of her image- her family, her marriage to Anakin Skywalker, her honesty and caring for other people. But she was very productive, and had led several movements through the Senate that brought more peace and stability to the galaxy. She was heralded as a brilliant politician, who knew when to be harsh and when to be compassionate, and she knew that was true- she had been that way since she was fourteen. She didn't know how she juggled her family and her duties as Chancellor, but somehow, the Chancellor of the Republic and a Jedi Master were able to act like any other crazy but extremely happy family.

She was to bring them to Youngling saber practice, and then head to the Senate. They walked over, several Younglings and their parents crowded by the door. The changes in the code also allowed for Younglings to live with their parents, if they had them. Padme had insisted upon it, and the older, more traditional, Jedi Masters had seen that it would bring more Younglings to the Temple. Family had so far proven a good thing- it was actually harder on the parents than on the children for them to be apart. The Younglings still seemed dedicated to being Jedi, and when they became Padawans they were almost always required to live with their Masters, at least during the week- so really, it wasn't too different. They still went on missions with their Masters and learned to live independently and protect themselves from a young age.

Padme and the twins walked over to see what the crowd was looking at. Everyone seemed very interested in whatever it was.

"I wonder if our children will ever look that impressive," one parent commented, and the others nodded. The children were captivated by the scene in front of them, staring in awe.

Padme approached and found them staring at Anakin and Obi Wan, sparring intensely, both wearing no shirt and sweating profusely- obviously they had been doing this for some time, probably ever since Anakin had left. Padme couldn't help but feel proud of Anakin- he really was incredible, and Obi Wan too. Everyone loved to watch the two of them fight- they were famous for being the best swordsman in the Order. Younglings and Padawans watched them whenever they could, hoping to pick up tips. Padme didn't know how they did it- they moved so quickly, flipping all around. She knew if she tried to even do that slowly, she'd fall flat on her face. Now Obi Wan was on the offensive, and Anakin expertly blocked all of his blows. Anakin flipped over him, and turned, now putting Obi Wan on the defensive. The whole time, they stared intensely at each other, but a hint of a smile was present on both of their faces. Padme knew that both of them loved to fight, especially with each other- they were well matched, and with almost any one else either of them would win too easily.

"Daddy!" Luke cried, as he ran in to the room.

"Luke!" Padme yelled, trying to stop him. The other parents looked around, suddenly realizing who was standing right behind them.

"Your husband is incredible," one parent told her.

"Thank you," Padme smiled, "He is, but I promise you he needs no encouragement, he is confident enough," she laughed, and the other parents laughed too.

"Luke!" Padme yelled again, knowing it was hopeless. "Now if only we could control these two," she sighed, and all the parents nodded, their own children growing restless.

"Luke go back to the door," Anakin said sternly, never taking his gaze or concentration away from Obi Wan.

"But daddy!" Luke whined, and Anakin used the force to move his small son back to the door.

"Woah!" Luke giggled, as he landed next to Leia.

"Daddy, do that to me!" Leia yelled, and Anakin rolled his eyes, realizing that what had been an intense session of sparring was now over. Anakin deactivated his saber and bowed to Obi Wan, and Obi Wan did the same. Then both turned, smiling, to the Younglings.

"Hello, Skywalkers," Obi Wan said cheerfully. "All right, Younglings, come in, come in. Youngling Skywalker has decided that it is time for lessons to start," he paused, staring at Luke, and the Younglings laughed.

The parents kissed their children goodbye, as the eager learners ran into the room. Most parents stayed by the door to watch the beginning of the lesson, before leaving their children for the day at the Temple. Padme watched for a second, then turned to leave.

"Don't you have someone else you need to kiss goodbye?" She heard from behind her. She turned to Anakin, and smiled.

"If you think you're getting anywhere near me in this outfit while you're all sweaty, think again," she teased him. "You already ruined one of my senatorial robes. And this one is even fancier, we vote on the bill to regulate trade in Hutt Space today."

Anakin pretended to be hurt, and turned away, saying nothing.

"Oh Anakin, really," Padme said. She went over to him and turned him around. She leaned in a pecked him on the lips, making sure not to touch him anywhere else. She then turned to leave.

"Good luck with that bill, Chancellor" one parent said to her.

"Thank you," she replied, "I will need it. Unfortunately, most people are more for turning the other cheek, if you get my meaning. But we simply cannot let all of this fraud continue, its hurting bank systems throughout the galaxy!" She said, suddenly caught up in politics again.

"I agree," said the parent. "I'vesupportedthe bill all the time, but it keeps coming back through."

"I promise you, I'm working my hardest to push it, it's good to know at least somebody agrees with me," Padme smiled. "Have a good day," she said, and left.

Back in the sparring room, Anakin and Obi Wan began the Youngling class.

"Ok, everyone get a partner," Anakin instructed, wiping his brow with a towel.

Luke and Leia immediately gravitated away from one another, but a stern look from Anakin reminded them that they were only allowed to spar with each other. They were more powerful than the others in their year, and thus the only fair match for one another. It was discouraging to the others to be beaten so easily, but this way, no one could really tell that Luke and Leia were at all ahead of the others.

Leia stuck her tongue out at her brother. "Stupid Lukey, why do I have to be your partner?"

"I don't know, but I'm don't want to be partners with a Bantha like you," Luke retorted.

"Daddy! Luke called me a Bantha!" Leia said sweetly, putting on the puppy dog eyes that her father could not resist.

"Luke, that was not nice! Apologize to Leia," he instructed.

"She started it," Luke tried to explain. Anakin, torn between his son and his daughter, didn't know what to do. He couldn't be mean to either of them, they were so sweet and he loved them so much. Padme was far stricter than he was, he simply didn't know how to be.

"Well, just… both of you stop!" He said, and Obi Wan laughed at him.

"Why don't we split up into groups," Obi Wan suggested. "Luke and Leia, you will be in _my_ group."

They consented, but as they walked over to the other side of the room, Leia muttered "nerfherder" under her breath. Luke jumped at her, and they began to fight each other. Obi Wan had to rush over and separate them, being forced to actually threaten the twins with his light saber to make them stop. Otherwise, they paid no attention.

"Anakin, thank you for this," Obi Wan said, half joking but half serious. Anakin just smiled, and led his half of the class to the other side of the room.

Luke and Leia stuck out their tongues at each other one more time, knowing that with Obi Wan they wouldn't be able to get away with as much. Finally, they began the lesson, each team of Younglings practicing with their training sabers. After observing them for some time, commenting about their style and technique, Obi Wan and Anakin moved closer together so that they could talk.

"Anakin, your bloodline is going to be the death of me," Obi Wan said.

"We're sorry," Anakin apologized, and Obi Wan laughed.

"Luke and Leia are soon going to become Padawans," Obi Wan informed Anakin.

"So soon?"

"You know as well as I that they have been ready for months now. I just hope they learn enough discipline."

"Will I get to train one of them?"

"I don't know," Obi Wan said, honestly. "Would you be able to discipline them? It doesn't seem like you've done very well so far… they are too much like you."

"Of course! I can handle them." Anakin retorted. "I hope…" He added quietly.

"There is a council meeting immediately after this lesson to decide on their Masters," Obi Wan told him.  
"Why isn't it later tonight?"

"Well Anakin, thanks to you, many of the Masters now have a social life, remember?" Obi Wan teased him. "Now, no one seems to want to hang out at the Temple on a Friday night."

"So what are your plans for tonight Obi Wan?" Anakin asked. After the code had been changed, Anakin teased Obi Wan constantly about his social life- but Obi Wan was very private about it.

"Like I would tell you," Obi Wan laughed, and went back to give further instructions to the Younglings.

"Let me put it this way, Obi Wan," Anakin teased him. "Should I set a place for you at dinner tonight?"

"Eat with the Skywalkers for the second time in a week? I'd rather be fed to the Sarlaac," Obi Wan joked.

"You know, you've become more sarcastic lately," Anakin said, feigning annoyance.

"It's because of your lovely influence, Anakin," Obi wan teased him, "thank you."

"Hey Younglings," Anakin yelled, and they all turned to him.

"Anakin, what are you doing?" Obi Wan asked worriedly.

"Master Kenobi has a date tonight," Anakin told them, and all the Younglings giggled.

"Thank you for that, Anakin," Obi Wan said, annoyed.

"Who is it with Master Kenobi," asked one little girl, giggling.

"I can't tell you that, Taryn, you know that the Temple is to always be kept separate from private life," he told her. The little girl looked at Leia, and the two giggled.

"Daddy, do you have a date too?" Leia asked.

"Leia, I'm married to your mother," Anakin told her, rolling his eyes.

"That means you can't go out on dates?"  
"Only with her," Anakin laughed. He honestly didn't know where his children came up with these things.

"Oh," Leia said. "What about me, can I?"  
"No!" Anakin yelled, to enthusiastically. "Not until you're at least twenty."

"Twenty Anakin?" Obi Wan asked him. "That's a little old."  
"No it isn't, not at all," Anakin said, beginning to panic at the idea of Leia dating. "She needs to be safe," he added, trying to sound rational.

Obi Wan laughed at his friend. Since when had Anakin Skywalker gone from reckless and carefree young Jedi to concerned and overprotective parent? He had to give his friend credit- Anakin did a good job of being responsible and caring when it came to Padme and his children, but never lost that mischievous, somewhat immature side that was endearing about him.

"All right, Younglings," Obi Wan said. "Lesson's over. Go and have your snack in the cafeteria, then head to your classes." The Younglings filed out, giggling excitedly. Before Leia could walk out, Anakin grabbed her, and gave her a big hug.

"Bye, my little angel," He said to her, looking into her eyes for a second to let her know that he loved her. "Luke!" He yelled, and Luke turned back to him. He walked over, and hugged the little boy, and Luke scrunched up his nose and wiggled away.

"Bye daddy," he said sweetly, and ran off with Leia. Anakin laughed, and smiled after his children. He loved them so much; he hadn't even known love like this was possible.

"Who would've known that you would turn into such a responsible father," Obi Wan teased him, interrupting his thoughts.

"Well that is thanks to your 'lovely influence', Obi Wan," Anakin smiled, and they headed up to the Council Room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Ch. 2**

Anakin and Obi Wan entered the council room, slightly late, and sat down quickly to complete the circle of council members. After a few moments of silence to let them settle in, Yoda began to discuss the issue at hand.

"Padawans, Master Skywalker's children are to become," he informed the council.

"How soon?" Anakin asked, excited but nervous for his children to move on to the next step of Jedi training so early.

"We intend to decide on their Masters today," Mace Windu told him.

"Decide, you must, Anakin, if you want to train one of your children," Yoda said, eyeing Anakin intently.

"Are you serious?" Anakin said, much like a young Padawan himself in his excitement. "You are going to let me train one of them?"

"If promise us, you can, that discipline either of them, you would as any other Master," Yoda replied.

"I will try as hard as I can not to treat them in any special way. I want them to be powerful and wise Jedi, and good people- I will not try to make the process any easier. I promise you that," Anakin said. "What I cannot promise is to stop loving them, to stop having my emotional attachment as their father. With this in mind, it is up to the council to decide."

"Maturity, have you shown in that comment, Anakin," Yoda said, impressed. "Train Leia, I think you should."

Anakin was silent for a second, letting his happiness sink in. He would get to train his little angel, the little girl who could make his heart stop…but would he be able to train her? While she was a child, he knew it would be good for both of them, but as she grew up, would he have the heart to discipline her? And to lead her through the difficulties of growing up… well, Padme could do that. And he wanted to make her a good Jedi, and so he would do what it took to make sure that happened. Yes, he could train her. He would love to.

"That's wonderful, Master Yoda," Anakin said. "I would love to train Leia, and I promise she will be treated always as a Padawan in the Temple, and as a daughter at home."

"If juggle this you can, your Padawan she is," Yoda said.

"What about Luke?" Anakin asked, eager to hear who would be assigned his son.

"There's only one of us who knows how to handle someone like Luke," Mace said, and everyone knowingly turned towards Obi Wan.

"Another Skywalker Padawan?" Obi Wan asked, in disbelief, though really he had expected it. "Don't I have enough wrinkles already?" The council laughed, and Obi Wan sighed, and was silent for some time. "Of course I will train Luke, as long as his father promises not to teach him how to play tricks on me," he eyed Anakin intently, but Anakin just looked around, refusing to meet Obi Wan's gaze. "It would be an honor, maybe I can instill discipline in at least one Skywalker."

"I am very disciplined," Anakin said, smiling. "I would have no one else train Luke, Obi Wan. You are a second father to him already. I promise he'll be good…most of the time."

"Good, that's settled then- call them in here," Mace said, and just moments later the Skywalker twins appeared timidly at the council door.

"Daddy!" The yelled, and ran in to embrace their father.

"Hi!" He exclaimed, wrapping them both in a big bear hug.

"Daddy, use the Force to move me like you did with Luke this morning!" Leia exclaimed, and she crouched down with her eyes closed waiting for him to do so. The council members eyed Anakin sternly for this abuse of power.

Anakin smiled sheepishly. "Now is not the time, Leia. I'm not really supposed to do that."

"Oh," Leia replied sadly, "Ok!" she said, suddenly cheerful again. The twins ran around the room, chasing each other, and everyone looked at Anakin, not wanting to show that they were in fact amused by his children.

"Luke, Leia, mind your manners," Anakin attempted to seem authoritative.

"Daddy, you sound like mommy!" Luke said. "I don't like it…"

At this, the council laughed, and Anakin blushed.

"Youngling Skywalkers, we…" Yoda began, but Leia interrupted him.

"Daddy, what were you and mommy doing last night when 3-PO said I couldn't go in there?" Leia asked. "I wanted you to come watch the Holo Net with me, because I couldn't sleep, but 3-PO just gave me some milk and said I should be in bed."

Anakin shrunk down in his chair, even redder in the face, and the council just looked at him, trying to contain their laughter.

"We were just, um… sleeping Leia, 3-PO was nice enough to not let you disturb us!" Anakin answered, proud of his quick comeback.

"Ok," Leia said. The entire time, she and Luke never ceased running around and exploring the council room.

"We have something to-" Mace tried, but this time Luke interrupted.

"Daddy, look at me!" Luke yelled, trying to do a Jedi flip in the middle of the room, but landing on his face. Anakin, concerned, rushed over to see if he was all right, but Luke was laughing. "I did it daddy!"

Anakin laughed, relieved that he was all right and ever proud that his son was daring and ready to try new things all the time. "Good job, Luke."

"You did not do it, Lukey, you fell on your face," Leia told him.

"Shut up."

"You shut up, laser brain," she said, and ran away before he could catch her.

"Luke, Leia, come here," Anakin said, and amazingly, they obliged. "Sit here with me, ok? We have something important to tell you."

"Ok, daddy!" Leia said sweetly, but Luke nudged her with his foot. She kicked him back, and soon they were wrestling on Anakin's lap. Finally, he pulled each of them over to one side of him, holding them just far enough apart so that as much as they struggled, they could not reach each other.

"Calm down," he said, "it's time to listen." Defeated, the twins settled down.

"Padawans, you are to become," Yoda said, getting the news out before he could be interrupted again.

"Your light saber skills and intuition in the Force, much like your father's, are extremely advanced. Now, to learn discipline and the proper ways to use your abilities, you must each be assigned a Master to teach you," Mace explained.

"So we're going to become real Jedis!" Leia exclaimed, excited.

"Yes," Mace laughed, "you are."

"Who gets to be our Masters?" Asked Luke.

"Well Luke," Obi Wan began. "I suppose that I _get_ to be yours," Obi Wan said, laughing as he enunciated Luke's idea that it was a privilege to be his Master.

"Yaaay!" Luke yelled, and he rushed over to give Obi Wan a hug. At this, Obi Wan smiled genuinely, and hugged his new Padawan back. "It will be fun, Luke. Especially," he added, making sure Anakin was listening, "If you are anything like your father." He smiled warmly at Anakin.

"You were daddy's Master too?" Luke asked, wide-eyed.

"Yes, and I think I did a pretty good job, don't you Luke?"

"Wow, you must be old!" Luke yelled, and Obi Wan just stared at Anakin. Suddenly, both Jedi Masters burst out laughing at Luke's audacity.

"What?" Luke asked.

"Nothing, nothing," Obi Wan said, amused.

"What about me?" Leia asked, pouting and looking exactly like Anakin when he felt left out.

Anakin turned her around on his lap, so that she was facing him. "Little angel, look at me," he said. She turned to him with a big smile. "I get to be your Master," He said, completely honest in feeling privileged.

Leia, suddenly demonstrating a maturity no one had seen in her before, gave her father a silent hug. "We will have a good time, daddy," she said.

"I think so too Leia," he replied. "But you have to promise to listen to me, because it is very important that a Master be strict with his Padawan, some of the time. But we also get to have lots of fun together, as long as you pay attention when I ask you to, all right Leia?"

"Ok daddy," she said.

"Oh," he said, "And you have to call me Master."

"Ok, Master daddy," she said, and the Jedi Masters all began to laugh.

Anakin and Obi Wan then took Luke and Leia to have their ceremonial Padawan braid put in their hair. Leia was to wear her long brown hair up, and have the braid hang down (A.N. now way is a four year old girl having a buzz cut in my story- what do they do with the girls?). Luke was given a buzz cut and a braid in the classic Padawan style. Anakin looked at them, realizing how old they suddenly looked. It was the first time that he realized they were not babies any more, but children, real little people with personalities and private thoughts and ideas.

Obi Wan, sensing his friend's thoughts, put his arm on Anakin's shoulder.

"They will be wonderful Jedi, Anakin," he said. "And don't worry, they'll still be your children, always."

Anakin turned to him and smiled, trying not to show that Obi Wan had discovered exactly what he was thinking. Obi Wan just laughed, and they led them into the cafeteria to eat lunch.

"By the way," Anakin said to Obi Wan, but Obi Wan cut him off.

"At least until he's much older, Luke should still live with you," Obi Wan said, knowing exactly what was on his mind. "Unless he's on a mission with me, I don't see why he shouldn't be with you, especially because his sister will be- it would be strange to have one twin estranged from the family."  
Anakin smiled, amazed at how Obi Wan always knew exactly what he was thinking. 'Oh right,' he remembered, 'the Force.' He laughed to himself, and they continued to lunch.

Padme was sitting at home writing a speech when the twins came bursting through the door, both babbling incessantly about something exciting that had happened that day. She was unable to decipher any of it, and just looked up at Anakin, and they both laughed. Suddenly, she noticed the difference in the appearance of her twins.

"They're Padawans!" She exclaimed, extremely proud but also having the same feeling of sentimentality that Anakin had felt watching their hair be braided. Tears came to her eyes, and Anakin understood immediately, and walked over to give her a warm hug.

"Why are you sad, mommy?" Asked Luke.

"I'm not, not sad, Luke," she said. "I'm just very proud of both of you." Satisfied, Luke and Leia ran into their room, nearly knocking down C-3PO on the way, to play with their toys before dinner.

"You didn't tell me this was going to happen," she said to Anakin, slightly insulted she should find out so late.

"I didn't know," he said, "I promise you, you know I would have told you right away."

She nodded, realizing this was true. "I just can't believe our babies are growing up," she said sadly, then laughed. "I don't know why this makes me sad, it's such a wonderful thing!"

"I understand, Padme, it's hard. But think about how excited they are- it means so much to them to finally be, as Leia put it, 'real Jedis,'" He laughed, and she smiled at him gratefully.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, suddenly realizing the most important question she forgot to ask. "Who are their Masters?"  
"Well," Anakin began, barely able to hide his excitement from Padme. "Obi Wan is Luke's…Everyone seemed to agree that only he knew how to handle, um… a Skywalker boy," he blushed, and Padme kissed his cheek, finding it endearing.

"What about Leia?" She asked, worried about who would have such an important influence in the life of her daughter.

"Me," Anakin answered simply. Padme said nothing, tears of happiness now in her eyes, and she hugged him. He tilted her chin up towards him, and kissed her deeply.

"I love you so much, Padme," he said. "And I love the twins so much… do you know how happy I am?"

"If it's even half of how happy I am, then yes, I do," she answered.

"Now, when's dinner?" Anakin asked.

Padme laughed, "I don't know, 3PO should be almost finished making it, why don't' you go set the table?"

Anakin looked at her, furrowing his brow. "Isn't that more something for the kids to do?"

"Come on Anakin, you can do it in five seconds using the Force."

"Still," he pouted, "I can think of something I'd rather do." He approached her and picked her up, spinning her around the room.

"You know the rule Anakin, if the kids are awake, no."

"Yeah," he said, defeated, "I know the rule."

He walked over and set the table, as Padme returned to her speech. Soon after, 3PO told them that dinner was ready, and as the twins ran in rambunctiously and began to gobble up their food, the Skywalker family sat down to dinner.


	3. Chapter 3

**Ch. 3**

Anakin, Padme, Luke, and Leia, sat on the couch, watching the Holo Net together. Anakin had his arm around Padme, and though he stared intently ahead, he was paying no attention to the program they were watching. He was thinking about how incredible his life had become- he had always felt lucky, being rescued from the life of a slave to become a Jedi Knight- but now, he felt like the luckiest being in the universe. He only hoped that through his work as a Jedi he could someday make himself deserving of it all, this love that surrounded him, his incredible family, loyal friends and the respect and friendship of all of the Jedi. Suddenly, he realized that a small voice was interrupting his thoughts.

"Aren't you going to say goodnight to us, too daddy?" Leia was asking.

"Is it time for bed already?" Anakin asked, smiling at her.

"Mommy says so," she replied, obediently.

"Well, if mommy says," he eyed Padme, "it must be true. Mommy is always right you know, Leia."

"Ok," Leia said.

"Don't think I don't know what you want when you say things like that, Ani," Padme said, amused.

"What, I just respect your every opinion," Anakin answered.

"I see, and how come you always respect it right before we go to bed?"

"Coincidence," Anakin answered.

Padme laughed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, ok."

They each carried a sleepy four-year-old over to the room the twins shared, helping them brush their teeth and get their pajamas on.

"Goodnight, my loves," Padme said, giving each child a kiss on the forehead.

"Goodnight, angels," said Anakin, doing the same.

They watched them from the doorway as the twins drifted off to sleep, then quietly went back to their own room.

"Anakin," Padme began, eyeing him nervously.

"Hm?" Anakin said, struggling out of his Jedi robes and into more comfortable clothes.

"Anakin, you love Luke and Leia right?"

"How could you even ask that question? I love them more than anything."

"Do you think you have enough love left for one more?"

Anakin turned to her, now very interested in what she had to say.

"Are you saying…?" He asked excitedly.

Padme nodded, biting her lip. "Yes, I had a doctor's appointment today."

"That's wonderful!" Anakin exclaimed, picking her up and twirling her around. "I was just today feeling sad that they were no longer babies… and now we'll have another! Padme, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Well, we've both been busy lately, I honestly was hardly thinking about it myself. I just began to realize it a few days ago…"

He paused, and looked into her eyes. She blushed, as she always did when he looked this intensely at her. For some reason, she still had that reaction to him, just out of pure love. She was so happy, the second she had begun to realize she was pregnant again she couldn't wait to tell Anakin. Seeing him just as excited as she was brought tears of happiness to her eyes- she couldn't wait to see their new baby, she knew it would be beautiful just like the twins…the twins! What would they tell them?

"Anakin!" She exclaimed suddenly, interrupting both of their peaceful thoughts. "What will we tell the twins?"

"Oh, they will be excited, don't worry," Anakin reassured her.

"Are you sure?" She asked nervously. "I don't want them to feel unloved or anything…"

"Just yesterday, Leia asked me for a pet. Well, this is sort of like that, but even better!"

"Anakin, it's not quite the same, I certainly hope you don't consider our children pets…" She said sternly, still smiling at him.

He laughed, and hugged her again.

"You know what," he said, again smiling at her in the way that she loved, as if he thought he had a brilliant idea.

"What?" She asked.

"We're going to need a bigger apartment!"

"One thing at a time Anakin," she laughed. "Although, I guess you're right..."

"Tomorrow is Saturday, we can tell Luke and Leia then. Then we can begin looking for a bigger place! Padme this is so exciting…"

"When we tell them, we have to be doing something fun for them- so that they associate the news of their baby brother or sister with happiness," Padme said expertly. Anakin eyed her suspiciously, wondering where this had come from. She laughed, and looked away shyly, "I've been reading about it," she admitted.

"You read too much," Anakin teased her.

"Maybe you read too little, did that ever occur to you?"

"Well either way, I guess it means our children will read just the right amount," he said. She laughed, and he kissed her, and then her stomach.

"Goodnight, my newest little angel," he said, and they snuggled in to bed.

The next morning, Anakin and Padme woke the twins up bright and early with their favorite breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes. The giddy and sugar-high twins danced around the apartment afterwards, excited for it to be Saturday.

"Hey guys!" Anakin said, animatedly. He eyed Padme; ready to carry out the plan they had been discussing this morning. "How would you like to go flying today?"

"Yaaaay!" They screamed, now running around with even more energy.

"In one of your ships daddy?" Luke asked.

"One of?" Padme raised her eyebrow at Anakin. "How many ships do you have, Anakin?"

"Um…just a couple," Anakin mumbled, looking away.

"And Luke knows this why?"

Anakin mumbled something about the Jedi Temple hangar and restoring old ships and wandered away. Padme just rolled her eyes and packed a bag for the twins.

They walked to the Jedi Temple, instead of taking a speeder, just enjoying being together as a family. At first, the Senate had worried greatly when Padme had dismissed all of her handmaidens, but everyone soon realized that her time away from the well-guarded Senate was almost all spent with Anakin Skywalker, if not with other Jedi as well, and stopped worrying. Padme enjoyed the freedom she hadn't had since she was fourteen of walking around without an entourage of bodyguards and doubles- though it certainly did comfort her that Anakin was with her most of the time. Along the way, several people greeted or congratulated either Padme or Anakin, or both, on their latest work. The twins always were excited and proud when their parents were recognized (which was basically all the time) but Padme and Anakin, though always gracious and kind, wished they could be anonymous some of the time- especially when reporters were around. However, knowing that they didn't have to hide, that they could now be out in the open about their relationship and their children, was a wonderful feeling for both.

Finally, the family reached the Jedi Temple, and walked through the gardens to the enormous hangar where the Jedi Star fighters were housed, along with extra ships acquired by Jedi Masters, of whom Anakin was of course notorious for having the most. Just as they were about to reach the hangar, they all saw Obi Wan and another person walking through the gardens. Immediately, Anakin and Padme recognized that it was a woman, and eyed each other, laughing.

"I knew it!" Anakin said. "I knew," he lowered his voice so only Padme could hear, "that he had a girlfriend he wasn't telling me about."

"Anakin, he could have had girlfriends even when the code wasn't changed, you managed to keep your marriage secret. Maybe there's a lot he's not telling you," Padme said, also amused.

"No, he wouldn't have," Anakin began, then stared at her, wide-eyed. "You think?"

She laughed. "Frankly, no, I'm just saying you don't know everything about his life."

Suddenly, Obi Wan noticed them, and he looked up, horrified. Padme and Anakin waved, almost giddy at this piece of gossip. Obi Wan, ever more mature, just rolled his eyes, and glared at Anakin.

'Later, you _will_ tell me,' Anakin said through the Force.

'Oh, don't be so sure,' Obi wan told him.

'Blackmail!' Anakin said.

'Who cares, no more strict code, thanks to you,' Obi Wan shot back.

'I will never let this go,' Anakin finished, and he and Obi Wan glared at each other, then laughed.

"Ow!" Said Anakin, as a sharp pain formed in his arm. He realized it was due to his wife, who had slapped him.

"Stop Force talking," she said. "I want to hear too!"

"Daddy just threatened to Blackmail Obi Wan!" Luke said, "What's blackmail?"

Padme looked at Luke, then looked smugly back at Anakin. "Now I have a way to hear everything- ha!"

But Anakin was silent, staring at Luke. Younglings of his age could hardly even harness the Force to call a feather towards them, much less to get into people's minds. This was significantly impressive, he couldn't believe it.

"You heard that Luke?"

"Of course," Luke answered.

"What about you Leia?"

"Um, yes," Leia answered, as if it was obvious.

"Why is that weird, you know they're Force sensitive," Padme asked.

"Ok, you seem to think the Force is easy to use, let me explain something to you," Anakin teased her, "Um… it's not."

"Well said, Master Skywalker," she mocked him back.  
"Younglings can't do that, I mean never, I mean it's impossible… it's…I'll have to tell the council about this." Anakin said, still shocked. He turned back to them, "Can you two talk to each other like that, in your minds?"

"Yes," Luke answered.

"Twin thing!" Leia said cutely.

"No… Force thing," Anakin corrected. "That's very, very, very impressive. I want you both to know that. But I also want you to promise me something."

"Yes daddy?"

"Don't do it anymore, until I teach you, Leia, and Obi Wan teaches you, Luke. Because it can be a dangerous tool in the wrong circumstances if used improperly."

"Umm… ok!" They said, and he knew they really didn't understand anything that he had just said.

"So they're really powerful?" Padme asked.

"Well, apparently…" Anakin said, then stopped, lost in his own thoughts.

"I can't believe this is starting already," Padme said. "Pretty soon, no one will even bother to talk to me anymore, you'll just all talk in your heads, and I'll become obsolete!"

Anakin laughed, and hugged her. "You can never be obsolete, you're the Chancellor and you're the mother… and most of all, you're my beautiful wife and I couldn't ever live without talking to you." She smiled, and he kissed her.

"Ew, stop." Leia said, and Luke stuck out his tongue.

"Ok," Padme answered, and they both smiled.

"I'll have to warn Obi Wan about this," Anakin said, but turned to see that Obi Wan was trying to walk away. "Later," he said, and waved really enthusiastically at his former Master. They all turned back to Obi wan and he smirked at them

The family entered the hangar and found Anakin's corner. Every Jedi had their own slip in the hangar, but Anakin truly did have his own corner. Younglings and Padawans would sneak in just to look at Master Skywalker's ships- every time he found an old abandoned ship on a mission, or just one that needed repair and was being junked on Coruscant, he would take it and fix it. He had always been good at fixing things, and it helped him relax. In the past four years, living with Padme and the twins, he wasn't at the Temple as much and hadn't restored very many ships. But still about seven remained, not to mention his gleaming Jedi starfighter into which he had installed every piece of new technology that he could. He smiled sheepishly at Padme, and undraped a larger ship that could fit the whole family.

"Where's your starfighter daddy?" Leia asked. "I don't see it."

"Well that's under a special shield," Anakin answered. "So it doesn't get messed up. We aren't supposed to get them out unless we are in battle, or on most missions, but trust me Leia, you'll be seeing a lot of it in your life as my Padawan."

"Anakin," Padme began, "how long have you had all of these?"

"Oh, I don't even know. Some of them for years," Anakin answered.

"And you've never shown me, why?"

"Well, we use your ships for traveling, and I don't really come here much any more, after the code changed and I could live with you… I wanted to spend more time with you than with my ships!" Anakin answered, hoping that sounded justifiable.

"Hm," Was all Padme said, but she did smile. Ever since she had met Anakin as a little boy, she had admired his ability to fix things. When he was grown up, and became her husband, she had loved to watch him focus so intently on these tasks of restoration, and it actually made her happy that he kept up his passion.

"That ship is a recent model," she commented, still pretending to be insulted. "You couldn't have found that trashed."  
"Ok, I bought that one," Anakin admitted. "Look at it though, its hyper drive is faster than any model ever made… I mean how could you not buy it?"  
"I didn't buy it," she said.

"Well _I_ did," he answered, and they glared at each other, trying not to burst out laughing before the other one. Padme let go first, smiling, and then Anakin and she both laughed.

"Ok, but we're going in this one today," Anakin said, and he helped the twins aboard. The ship was large and spacious, and Anakin had already installed smaller seats and a little play room for the twins.

"See, I was thinking of all of you," Anakin said. I even put a book in it, for you Padme.

"This book is about ship repair," she noted.

"See, I do read," Anakin said, and Padme laughed. He hugged her, and they all strapped in and were soon in space.

"Daddy, will you teach me to fly a ship?" Luke asked.

"Of course, but not until you're a little older," Anakin answered. "I'll have to, because Master Obi Wan hates flying so he will put off teaching you as long as possible. He was lucky with me, I already knew how to fly," Anakin joked.

"Oh no," Padme said. "You are not teaching them to fly like you, you nearly get us killed every time."

"But I never do," Anakin said. "I would never put any of you in danger, I know what I'm doing, Padme."

"I know _you_ do," Padme said. "But _they_ don't."

"That's why I'll teach them!" He said cheerfully.

"Daddy is the best pilot in the galaxy," Leia said. "Master Yoda said so. So don't worry, mommy."

"Master Yoda said that?" Anakin asked. Never before had Yoda actually directly complemented his flying skills as other people had. And Yoda's opinion mattered a lot to Anakin.

"Yes, in spaceships class the other day," Leia said.

"Spaceships class?" Anakin asked, amused by her description and wondering what the class actually was.

"Yes, where we talk about Jedis duty in space battles," Leia said.

"They're teaching them about battles and fighting already?" Padme exclaimed, worriedly.

"Well, they _are_ being trained to be warriors," Anakin answered. "Don't worry, it's very tame at this age. You heard Leia- 'spaceships class,'" Anakin laughed, and Padme, despite herself, smiled.

"All right," Anakin announced, "the ship's coordinates are set to orbit Coruscant… are you ready?"

"Yes, I think so," Padme said, suddenly very nervous to tell her precious children that there would be a new sibling soon.

"Luke, Leia," Anakin said, "Come here. We have something important to tell you."

"What is it, daddy?" Luke asked, walking in and sitting on Anakin's lap. Leia followed him into the cockpit and sat on Padme's lap.

"Well, what would you two think about having a little brother or sister?" Anakin asked them, Padme looking very nervous.

"That would be fun!" Leia answered, excited.

"Are we really getting one?" Luke asked.

"Well, yes," Padme answered. "We still love you two very, very much, we just are all going to share in loving the new baby too."

"Obviously," Luke said, and Anakin and Padme laughed as he stumbled over the word.

"So, you're happy about it?" Anakin asked.

"Yeah!" Leia answered. "As long as it doesn't steal my toys. I get to be the big sister and it has to do what I tell it to."  
"Well, not always, Leia. The baby doesn't have to do whatever you tell it to," Padme said.

"Oh," Leia answered, dejected. "Oh well."  
"I will protect it because I'm the big brother and that's what I'm supposed to do," Luke said proudly.

Padme smiled at him, his comment really touching her. "That's wonderful, Luke, thank you," she said, while playing with Leia's hair.

"So when are we getting this baby," Leia asked, all business- much like her mother. "Is that where we're flying to today?"  
Anakin and Padme laughed. "No sweetie, the baby will come in about six more months," Padme answered.

"Why can't we get it now?"

"Because…" Padme said cautiously, really not wanting to have to explain this to them.

"Where is it now?"

"Leia," Anakin began, "you know how sometimes you see mommies with big bellies and you asked us why, and we told you because a baby was inside there waiting to be born?"

"Yes," Leia answered, still not piecing it together.

"So the baby's growing inside mommy?" Luke asked.

"Smarty-pants," Leia said, angry she hadn't figured it out first.

"Shut up, bantha," Luke said.

"You shut up, nerf herder," Leia retorted.

"Stop it, you two," Padme scolded them.  
"How come your tummy isn't big then, mommy?" Luke asked.

"Well, it will be Luke. The baby is very tiny right now but it will grow bigger, and that's when my stomach will also get bigger, to make room for the baby," she responded, hoping he would leave it at that.

"Oh, and that takes six months?"

"Well, it takes nine, but it has been about three months already," she told him.

"Well, why didn't you tell us then?"

"We only just found out for sure," Padme answered.

"How could you not know if a baby was growing inside of you?" Leia asked, she and Luke both now looking at Padme's stomach.

"Well the doctor has to check and tell you, and I just had a doctor's appointment today," Padme answered, really not sure what else to say to a four year old.

"So you did know," Leia asked again.

"Well I wasn't sure, Leia," she answered.

"Why not? Why would you think but not be sure?" Luke asked.

"It's complicated," was all Padme said, hating herself for dismissing her son but not wanting to explain it.

"Well how did it get there then, wouldn't you know when it got put there?" Luke asked.

"Um…" Padme hesitated, and she and Anakin laughed uncomfortably.

"I mean, you can't very well have a whole person inside of you and not know about it," Leia continued, "I mean I think I would definitely know if-"

Padme cut her off, not wanting to hear her four year old talk about being pregnant. "Leia, it starts out as a tiny cell, there's no way to know until you start having symptoms of being pregnant."

"What are the symptoms?" Leia asked, more about what the word meant then what the symptoms of pregnancy were.

"Well, for example, sometimes I feel really sick in the mornings," Padme explained.  
"So do I sometimes, that doesn't mean I have a baby in me," Leia said.  
"Well it's kind of different."  
"How?" Luke asked.

"Well there are other things too," Padme explained. "There are reasons to know if you have a baby in you…"

"Like what?" Leia asked.

Padme groaned, frustrated, and Anakin just laughed. Padme glared at him, evilly.

"Why don't you ask daddy?" She suggested innocently, and Anakin stared at her.

"I don't even completely understand it myself, I mean," he laughed uncomfortably, "they don't really teach this stuff at the Temple, you know," Anakin said quickly.

"Well you seem to be a pretty eager and knowledgeable participant, Anakin," Padme said over the twins' heads, rolling her eyes at him.

"I mean about the science part, I mean what we learn, it's… it's all about medichlorians, and, and stuff…I mean they didn't until recently really want any Jedi thinking about it or anything, so I'm not really the one to tell them, I mean…" He continued to babble on, trying to get out of it, and Padme just laughed.

"Why daddy?" Leia asked, completely oblivious. "Why does mommy get a baby inside of her?"

Anakin stared at her, looking at the little innocent eyes of his daughter, and was unable to say anything.

Suddenly, he was interrupted by a two laser blasts rocking the whole ship.

"Sith!" Anakin shouted, suddenly springing to action. "Isn't this supposed to be a time of peace?"  
"What is going on?" Padme shouted. "How can someone be shooting at us, now?"

"I don't know, I can't even see them… but no ship could be under a cloaking device this closely to Coruscant's atmosphere…" Suddenly, Padme noticed a physical change in Anakin, as he became the Jedi Master that he was, springing into action and taking the ship out of orbit, flying quickly and sporadically to avoid any other blasts and to search for whatever ship had hit them. "Get the children in the back, Padme."  
"What's happening Daddy?" Leia asked, she and Luke looking scared. But both of them also had a look of awe for their father on their faces, and Padme rushed to the back of the ship with them.  
"Whoever chose to shoot at us, it was a bad idea!" Anakin yelled back to them. "I will find them, I promise."  
"Don't be too hasty Anakin, please, it could have been a mistake!"

"No one should be shooting in the first place!" He yelled. "He could have hurt my children, and that is not ok. They shouldn't have to deal with anything remotely like this until much later in their lives."

He maneuvered around, flipping switches and activating their shields, but he saw no ships nearby save the regular transport ship.

"Ok, listen to me Padme. I'm going to land, and get Obi Wan, and we will go back up and try to find this guy… you just take the kids and wait in the hangar, ok? It won't be long, but I will have to alert the council…Leia, you might get to see the star fighter after all," he said hastily, already starting to land the ship.


	4. Chapter 4

**Ch. 4**

Anakin landed the ship hastily, grabbing Leia and taking Padme's hand as she carried Luke to get them off the ship quickly. Anakin was infuriated that someone had jeopardized the life of his family, and all of his energy was focused on finding and confronting whomever had shot at them. He was seething, he hadn't felt this angry and defensive since… well he didn't want to think about that now, he couldn't show that side of himself to his own children. He rushed to his starfighter, uncovering it with a gasp from Leia and Luke, who had never seen a real starfighter before.

Just as Anakin was preparing to call Obi Wan, his former Master came rushing into the hangar, with a very disturbed look on his face.

"Anakin, what's wrong, your Force presence is so disturbed I felt it the second you re-entered Coruscant's atmosphere, calm down old friend."

"Somebody shot at us, Obi Wan," Anakin said, wasting no time in finding an old R2-Unit, upset that he didn't have R2-D2 but knowing he had no time to go and get it. "And I'm going to find them, are you going to help me?"  
"Someone shot at you, just now?" Obi Wan asked, in disbelief.

"Yes, with my wife and children in the ship," Anakin said, his anger now growing more and more apparent.

"Anakin if you didn't get them right away there is no way we'll find them now," Obi Wan said, trying to calm him down. "We will have to investigate it certainly, shots being fired during this time of peace, but there is nothing we can do- Anakin, we will not find them ourselves."

"Yes we will," yelled Anakin, and nearby Jedi began to approach them, sneaking glances at the scene taking place in the hangar. "I'm going no matter what, are you helping me or not?"

"I will, but you have to calm down first. You know what happens when you get like this."

"These people deserve to be caught," Anakin shouted.

"What if it was an accident, Anakin? You don't know that they shot at you on purpose."

"I don't care," Anakin yelled. "They put my children's lives in danger." All the while, Padme held Luke and Leia, not wanting them to see their father like this.

"Anakin listen to yourself, you've gotten so much more mature, so much wiser, don't let your anger get a hold of you again."  
"I just want to find whoever did this," Anakin said through gritted teeth. Obi Wan opened his mouth to speak, but Anakin cut him off. "I'm fine, Obi Wan." He stormed towards his starfighter, his eyes blazing with anger, and was about to get in when he saw Obi Wan in front of him with his light saber raised.

"I can't let you go until you calm down," Obi Wan said, looking in to Anakin's eyes seriously.

Anakin ignited his own light saber. "Get out of my way," he screamed. Obi Wan didn't move, and soon the two were fighting as they did so often, except that this time it was for real. Now everyone was watching, wondering what could possibly be going on.

"Anakin, look at yourself. You are fighting me, is that what you want?" Obi Wan asked as they whipped around dangerously close to Anakin's ship. "Don't do this, Anakin. I want to help you, just calm down. You can't make assumptions before you know what really happened. I can't let you go and start shooting at every ship you see… I know you too well, Anakin. Look at your children- Do you want them to see you like this?" Finally, Anakin looked toward Luke and Leia and Padme, and took a deep breath. He put his light saber away, and looked at Obi Wan.

"I'm sorry, Master," he said humbly, feeling again as if he were Obi Wan's rebellious Padawan. "I just don't want to see them hurt. Please…"

"All right, let's go," Obi Wan said, knowing that his friend was now fine. Anakin was much better at controlling himself now, but he still occasionally let his emotions take hold of him. They jumped into their star fighters.

"Luke, Leia, stay here with your mother," Anakin said. "We'll be back soon."

Padme and the twins, as well as all the Jedi surrounding the scene, watched in awe as the famous Jedi Masters took off quickly in their star fighters, a sight no one had seen since the end of the Clone Wars.

"Yay daddy!" Leia yelled, and she and Luke, still not understanding the situation, jumped up and down as the starfighters rose into space.

Once they were in space, Obi Wan and Anakin could finally talk alone.

"Someone actually shot at you?" Obi Wan asked, still in disbelief.

"Yes, I haven't been shot at in four years and now this," Anakin answered. "Why?"

"I don't know Anakin," Obi Wan replied. "Did you see the ship?"

"No, all I could see anywhere near us was a transport."  
"But no ship could be cloaked that close to the atmosphere."

"That's what I said," Anakin answered. "Something is very wrong here."  
"There is a possibility it was just a stray shot…" Obi Wan mused.

"But why was anyone shooting in the first place? This is a free flying zone, it's unacceptable."

"I agree, but Anakin, as much as I know you feel the need to protect your family, I don't think that we can do anything up here," Obi Wan said cautiously.

Anakin sighed. "You're probably right, I Just felt that I…Obi Wan, why does that happen to me?"

Obi Wan knew exactly to what he was referring. "What I think, Anakin, and what I have always thought, is that… well, because it seems that the Force brought you life, I believe that your emotions are so tied to it that you effect it in a way that none of us do- the Force feels with you. But you have learned to control yourself, and that is why you have been much more able to think rationally about these situations as you grow older and learn more about the Force… So I don't blame you, my friend," Obi Wan smiled, but of course Anakin couldn't see it.

"I hope that's all," Anakin replied. "I don't want to be like that, it scares me, Obi Wan."

"That is why you learn to control it."

"Thank you, Obi Wan. What would I do without you?"

"Sometimes I really don't know," Obi Wan laughed. "Now Anakin, I think that we should land and report this to the council."

"All right," Anakin sighed. "I don't understand it…I just wish I could find something to lead me in the right direction…"

"I know you do, but there is nothing here that will help you."

"I know."

"All right then," Obi Wan replied, and began to head back into Coruscant's atmosphere.

"Wait," Anakin said. "Before you go, you still have to tell me about your girlfriend."

"Not on your life, Anakin Skywalker," Obi Wan replied, and landed before Anakin had a chance to say anything. Frustrated, Anakin landed as well.

As soon as his ship was on the ground, Anakin rushed to hug Padme and his children.

"Did you find anything?" Padme asked worriedly.

"No," Anakin said, feeling slightly defeated. "We're going to have to report this to the council and deal with it the 'proper' way…" He walked over to the ship that had been shot, and Obi Wan joined him, immediately understanding that inspecting the damage might give them a clue.

"Sith!" Anakin yelled, and Padme covered the children's ears.

"Anakin, language!"

"Sorry…It's just that…I can't repair this, this part that was damaged needs replacing," Anakin said, with more anger in his voice then one would expect in such a situation.

"Well that should be easy enough shouldn't it?" Padme asked hopefully.

"No," Anakin replied, and suddenly he looked very sad.

"What is it?" Padme asked, rushing to his side.

"There's only one place I can get this part, and it's the last place I ever wanted to go again." Padme looked slightly confused, but Obi Wan knew immediately what he was talking about.

"You don't have to Anakin. I will do it for you, if you would like," he offered, patting Anakin's back.

"No, I should. I should bring them," Anakin answered.

"You don't have to," Obi Wan replied.

"I would like them to know where I grew up," Anakin said, still looking sad.

"Oh," Padme gasped, suddenly understanding. "Anakin, let Obi Wan go."

"No, I should go back. I can't avoid it forever." Padme just hugged him, Luke and Leia already having run off to play in the gardens. He smiled at Padme, trying to pretend that he didn't dread going back to face his difficult childhood. It might not have been so bad, but the last time he had been on Tatooine had been the worst experience of his life, and seeing his childhood home would not only bring back memories of being a slave, but memories of his mother. But he tried to shake it off, for the sake of those around him. "It will be nice, Padme. Luke and Leia don't even know where I grew up- they should, don't you think?"

"I suppose so," Padme answered, still unsure. "Maybe it will show them not to complain so much, seeing how badly you had it at their age."

"No, I don't want them to know," Anakin said stubbornly.

"They won't even understand," Padme said.

"I don't want them to know."  
"Well then we won't tell them," Padme smiled, and hugged Anakin.

"We'll leave tomorrow. Obi Wan, care if I steal your Padawan for a few days?"

"Care if I steal your son for the next fifteen years?"

"Yeah, let's call it even."

Obi Wan smiled and gave Anakin a hug. "If you need anything," Obi Wan said warmly, "You know where I am."

"Oh, I think you'll keep yourself busy," Anakin said, smirking at his former Master. Obi Wan rolled his eyes and left the hangar.

"Are you going to be ok?" Padme asked, her heart breaking over the look of childish fear in her husband's eyes. When he was on Tatooine, she knew, he always was the frightened boy that she had met there- no matter how powerful and confident Master Skywalker became, Ani was always the little slave who had lost his mother. This sensitive side of him made her love him even more, but her heart wept for him whenever she saw it in his eyes.

"I will be fine," Anakin answered. "I have you." He kissed her, and they went to find their children and begin the trip back to Watoo's shop on Tatooine.


	5. Chapter 5

**Ch. 5**

The next morning, Padme and Anakin spent their days at work setting affairs in order so that they could take some time off and go back to Tatooine with the twins. Anakin easily obtained permission to leave to get a replacement part for his ship, and everyone understood that he would need Padme with him to make the difficult journey back to his first home. Padme could get out of work because, as the Chancellor in a time of relative peace, she was able to take her days off when she wanted them if no pressing matters arose in the Senate. She was to meet him later that night at the Temple, and the Skywalkers would leave for Tatooine.

At the temple, Anakin was preparing to teach his last class of the day- and to break it to the group of 15 to 17 year old Padawans that Master Kenobi would be taking over for him for the next few days. He sat in the classroom with his feet up on the table, forgetting as always that this was exactly what he had to tell the Padawans not to do. They looked up to him greatly; in fact with the younger Jedi Anakin was the most respected and envied Jedi because of his talent and importance- and the fact that he was rebellious enough to actually get the code changed. He was a legend already, even though he was not yet 30. But still, they knew that he was very laid back and personable. Obi Wan was stricter, so he knew that they would be in for some real learning for the next week. However, Obi Wan was popular himself, because he also was young for a Master and very friendly, so Anakin knew it would be all right.

Today, Anakin had Leia with him, because he wanted to introduce her to the class as his Padawan. They already knew Luke and Leia; the twins were famously precocious and mischievous around the temple- much like their father. As the Padawans began to file in, Leia was jumping from table to table, Anakin laughing and encouraging her.

"I don't think the other Masters would approve of that, Master Skywalker," joked one girl.

"Um," Anakin said, embarrassed, as he realized that his students were there. "Leia, get down, you shouldn't be doing that." Leia giggled as he lifted her down, and clung to his leg.

A boy and girl entered the room, the boy with his arm around her shoulders, and his other hand holding hers.

"Keep that outside of the temple," Anakin said, trying to be strict.

"But we live in the Temple, Master," said the boy.

"Oh, well um… out of the classroom," Anakin said.

"But Master, it was you who-"

"Ok, for the last time, I know what I did and I need not be reminded of it daily," Anakin said uncomfortably, and everyone laughed.

"Now, today we don't really have anything to do," Anakin said, and everyone cheered. It was by far their favorite class- he was supposed to be teaching them about flying (the only reason Anakin was allowed such an advanced level class in the first place), but he did most of his teaching the one time a week they would go up in the training starfighters together. And it seemed to work- his classes produced very successful pilots, though no one ever rivaled Anakin's own skills. He didn't really understand what he was supposed to be teaching them about flying inside of the classroom, so generally at least once or twice a week they would just talk, usually the Padawans asking him questions about the Clone Wars. Sometimes they could even cajole him into sparring with them. "For the next few days, maybe a week, Master Kenobi will be teaching you," Anakin said, and they all looked disappointed.

"Why?" Asked a boy.

"Because I'm going to Tatooine."

"On a mission?"  
"No, personal reasons, as well as needing a replacement part for one of my ships," Anakin said, and everyone immediately gave him their attention, obviously having heard rumors about the previous days events.

"Master Skywalker? Is it true that you got shot at?"

"Who told you that?" Anakin said, now serious.

"I just heard-"

"And do you trust everything you hear, Padawan Talwin?"

"No Master," she answered, though they all still clearly believed the rumor.

"Anyway, Master Kenobi will be teaching you, and I have to warn you, he hates flying, so I don't know what you all will do next Wednesday… I'll try to be back by then."

"Daddy!" Leia said, tugging at his robes. "I want to jump on the tables again!"

"Oh," Anakin said, "And this, everyone, is Leia."

"We know that, Master," one audacious Padawan told him.

"There's no need for sarcasm," Anakin scolded. "I know you know her, but I wanted to tell you that just recently, Luke and Leia both became Padawans. I will be training Leia, and Master Kenobi will be training Luke."

"Congratulations, Leia!" Said one girl, as Leia, ever the drama queen, took the opportunity to take a bow in front of the class. Everyone laughed.

"Now, I do need you all to do some research for me to be due next week," Anakin said, and everyone groaned. "Hey, I have to give you some work or I wouldn't be allowed to teach, and then you would get another Master and that would not be fun, trust me, I had them all." He said, and they cheered up a bit. "The assignment is posted on the Holo Network of the Temple, check it there. Now, what do you want to do today?"

At that moment, Padme burst into the room, obviously unaware that she was interrupting a class. With a scream of "Mommy!" Leia ran to her, and Padme picked her up instinctively without even processing the fact that Leia was actually there. "Anakin!" Padme said, angrily. "I thought you said Luke would be with Obi Wan, for me to pick up, but Obi Wan said that Luke went to dinner with the Younglings an hour ago, and he hasn't seen him since." Finally, she looked, and saw all the Padawans watching them with amused faces. They loved it when they saw Master Skywalker and the Chancellor together, to see them act like any family with their little domestic problems and their obvious love for one another. Everyone in the galaxy thought it was funny to observe the personal life of the Chancellor of the Republic and the great Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker.

"Oh, um… hello, I'm sorry," Padme said to the class. "It's just that Master Skywalker has gotten himself in trouble, again." The whole class laughed- they really liked the Chancellor, she was so young to be so successful, and kind, as well as the only one who always had authority over Master Skywalker.

"I'm sorry," Anakin said to her. "I don't know what happened, I thought he would be with Obi Wan, it's not my fault."

"Well we'd better go and find him," she said, suddenly staring at the little girl in her arms. "And why is Leia with you?"

"Because, they _should_ be with their Masters right now, Obi Wan is just being irresponsible."

"No daddy, right now is time for our dinner!" Leia piped in, charmingly.

"Oh…" Anakin said.

"Now who's being irresponsible," Padme asked, annoyed.

"Ok, well we were all going to eat together anyway, why don't you go get Luke, and then-"

"Anakin, I don't know my way around this temple, it took me half an hour to find you here!" Padme said, getting increasingly annoyed.

"Oh, well I'll come with you then. The Padawans can watch Leia for a while, and then we'll come get her."

"Yay!" Leia exclaimed, but Padme clearly wasn't pleased with this idea. Anakin walked over to comfort her.

"They're very responsible, don't worry. If she came, it would only make the process of finding Luke even harder." He put his arms on her shoulders, and she looked up at him, feeling reassured.

"All right," she said, and he leaned in and kissed her lightly on the lips.

"Yuck!" Leia exclaimed.

They laughed, and apologized to Leia as had become the custom.

"Keep a good eye on her," he told the class. "That can be your work for today."  
They assured him they would, and he and Padme went on their way.

Leia now stood alone in front of the class, and though she was very young she was old enough to realize that somehow she seemed to be in a position of command.

"We're going to play a game!" She informed them. The boy and girl who had been scolded by Anakin were now cuddling with one another, and Leia approached them. "Don't do that, it's gross. Mommy and Daddy do that, and I tell them to stop, so I'm telling you too," Leia announced, and the whole room burst out laughing- the idea of Master Skywalker's love life, as well as the idea of Leia's outlook on it and the fact that she was scolding Padawans who were more than ten years older than her, was highly amusing.

"You won't think of it that way when you're older Leia," the girl told her.

"Why?"

"Because, it's nice," she said.

"How is it nice?"

"Because, if you like someone, you want to be close to them," she tried to explain to the soon to be five year old.

"Like why Master Kenobi goes out on dates?" Leia asked, and the whole class burst out laughing again- no one had really known this about Master Kenobi, and the information was welcome gossip. "But my daddy can't, because he's married to my mommy, he can only go out with her," Leia said, again jumping around on top of the tables. "Why is that?"

"Well, when you're married it means you love only that person, so you don't go out with other people," another Padawan told her.  
"So you kiss those people that you love, like that, when you're married? And that's why mommy and daddy do it?" Leia asked, trying to understand but still finding it an unfavorable idea.

"Yes," answered one of the girls.

"And then you have babies!" Leia said, and everyone laughed again.

"Yes, if you want to, you have babies." Said another. They were all enjoying the little girl's outlook on life.

"Does kissing make you get babies?" Leia asked, still fixated on the subject from the previous days conversation. Everyone looked at each other, and laughed, unsure of what to say to her.

"Well, it can um… lead to how you get the babies," one girl said to her, and everyone tried to contain their laughter.

"Mommy is having a baby soon," Leia said, and the Padawans all looked at each other- Master Skywalker had not yet told them that he was expecting another baby. "In six months, I wanted to get it now, but she said we have to wait." Suddenly, they noticed that Leia was opening the door to leave, and got up to stop her. Soon, however, Leia Skywalker was running through the hallways of the Jedi Temple, several teenage Padawans in desperate pursuit.

Padme and Anakin walked toward the cafeteria, assuming that Luke would be in there with other young Jedi his age. As they passed under the archway, they saw Mace Windu with an angry look on his face.

"Padawan Skywalker!" He yelled.

"Yes," Anakin responded automatically, and the entire cafeteria turned to him, attempting to contain their laughter as he turned bright red at his mistake. Padme laughed, and he pushed her playfully in mock anger, though she just continued to laugh.

"The last time I checked, Anakin, we refer to you as Master Skywalker," Mace said to him, now laughing. "Actually, I was referring to your son…"

"I guess I'm just used to being the one making trouble," Anakin said, still embarrassed.

"I suppose now that you're here, you can take care of this," Mace said.

"What, exactly?"

"Take one more step into the cafeteria, and you'll see."  
Anakin and Padme did so, eyeing each other nervously, considering the possibilities of what new mischief Luke could have gotten himself into.

"Oh no," Padme sighed, as they saw Luke covered in food, having started a food fight among the group of Younglings of which he had, until recently, been a member.

"Luke!" Anakin yelled, going over to grab him.

"Yes daddy?" Luke asked innocently, his eyes twinkling. Anakin said nothing, but simply grabbed Luke, and Padme looked at the boy sternly when he tried to give her his puppy-eyes that usually merited immediate forgiveness. Luke knew he was in trouble when his dad was angry- normally Anakin encouraged mischief.

"Luke, apologize to the Masters," Anakin said, as they passed the table that included Master Windu.

"Sorry Masters," Luke pouted, though his face showed pride in the mischief he had created. They couldn't help but be amused as they remembered another young Padawan who, though he had been somewhat older when they met him, had given them that same look so many times.

Just as Padme and Anakin were exiting the cafeteria, Leia came running in and bumped right into her mother, almost knocking her over. When she saw Luke, Leia burst out laughing.

"What did you do, Lukey? You're all dirty."

"Luke was very bad Leia, don't encourage him."

"You mean _I'm_ the good one today?" Leia asked, truly excited.

Padme couldn't help it, she looked at Anakin, and the two began to laugh remorsefully. "When your children are surprised to be the 'good one,' you know something's wrong," she said, and she and Anakin just smiled at one another.

"Don't look at each other like that!" Leia said, her hands on her hips again. "That leads to kissing and _that_," she began confidently, ready to demonstrate her new knowledge, "leads to more babies, and I think that the one is going to be enough for now." She said, and Anakin dropped Luke, who giggled and ran away.

"Leia!" Padme said shocked. "How do you know that?"

Anakin stared at Leia, unable to believe that his four-year-old daughter was actually on the right track of the previous days discussion on where the baby was coming from. They hadn't told her, he knew, for he could sense that Padme was just as shocked as he was.

"Anakin," Padme said to him, worriedly, "she's too young to know that!"

"Well," Leia said, eyeing her parents rebelliously, "_some_ people tell me things."

"Why does our four-year-old act like she's a teenager?" Padme asked, utterly lost as to what to say.

"Um," was all Anakin could muster. Suddenly, he realized where she had learned this. "Did my class tell you this Leia?" He asked, and she tried to avoid his gaze, staring up with a betraying smile. "I can't believe they would do that!" Anakin said. "Luke!" He yelled, and Luke knew better than to not come immediately to his father. "Let's go," Anakin said, as he took the twins out of the cafeteria.

"Are we going now to Tatooine?" Leia asked excitedly.

"Yes," Anakin replied simply, obviously still angry. Very soon, they encountered his class of Padawans, out of breath from chasing Leia.

"Oh good," one of them said. "You found her."

"Yes," Anakin said, and they all looked nervously at each other, sensing the Master's rare disappointment.

"We're sorry Master, she started running out the door before we even realized it."  
Anakin sighed. "Oh, I suppose its ok, she is a handful… Oh by the way," he said, feigning nonchalance, "Which one of you taught my four year old about sex?"

All of the Padawans looked at each other nervously, and most of them turned to the girl who had said the most to Leia.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't actually teach her anything, she asked me if kissing is how you get babies, and I said it can lead to how you get them…" she said, and Anakin just stared at her.

"She's four!" he said. "Just say no!"

"Oh Anakin, it's all right," Padme said. "She doesn't understand it at all." Anakin couldn't help but be amused as well, and he forgave his class and said goodbye to them for the week.

"Goodbye Master Skywalker!" They all chimed in, and he rolled his eyes at them.

"Yes, be polite now," he teased them. "And never talk to my children about that again!" He said, as he and Padme walked away. They walked in silence for a while, as Padme tried to clean at least Luke's hands off, because she didn't want to touch them when they were that sticky.

"Daddy," Leia said, suddenly interrupting the silence. "What's sex?"

Padme immediately hit Anakin on the arm, staring at him. "Nice going," she said. "They hardly said anything to her, and you have to go and say that."

Anakin just froze, and neither of them said anything.

"What daddy, what is it?" Leia persisted.

"Um," Anakin said.

"Nothing Leia," Padme said.

"No it isn't nothing, it's something and you don't want me to know!" Leia said, pouting, her big brown eyes staring up at her mother. Padme couldn't stand to stare at them and lie, so she just looked at Anakin helplessly.

"Um, let's go clean Luke up and get going," Anakin said. "We have to leave now!"  
"What is it?" Luke asked, now interested as well.

"Hey um… why don't you two see if you can beat us to the hangar?" Anakin suggested, and the twins, forgetting everything else momentarily, ran off.

"Anakin, I can't believe they're asking us this already, I thought we had at least a few more years, at least!" Padme said, distressed.

"They'll forget, I'm sure, don't worry Padme," he said, also slightly worried by the whole situation.

"And what if they don't?" Padme asked him.

"Well then…" Anakin said, and the mischievous twinkle that she loved came into his eye. "We tell them to ask Master Kenobi."

"Anakin…" Padme tried to be rational, but she couldn't help but laugh. It was actually a good idea, at least for them, and not only that, but the result would be extraordinarily amusing. She knew Obi Wan wouldn't say anything either, but the situation would be very funny. "Ok," she said, and Anakin suddenly wrapped her in his arms in a huge hug.

"I love you," he said sweetly, and she smiled at him and gave him a kiss. "Now, we'd better go find the twins, knowing them they've found the meditation room and have interrupted Master Yoda in the midst of deep mediation," Anakin joked, and began to run off just like the children had.

"Anakin, wait!" Padme said, but soon gave in and followed him. As they ran through the halls, laughing, the Jedi in their path simply watched in confusion and amusement as Master Skywalker and Chancellor Skywalker ran through the halls of the temple- especially because most had seen the twins run by moments before. The Skywalker family was always a mystery and no one really understood them- something random and humorous was always happening with them. But everyone loved them, for they were the embodiment of the peace and happiness that had reigned the galaxy since the very same family had helped in defeating the Sith nearly five years ago.


	6. Chapter 6

**Ch. 6**

Anakin and Padme sat in the cockpit of one of Anakin's bigger ships, for though Padme's were far nicer for travel, Anakin's were armed, and he insisted that they not be completely unarmed due to the events of the day before. Luke and Leia were sleeping, having exhausted themselves running around the ship all day, the highlight having been Anakin sitting them on his lap, putting the ship on manual control, and letting them help steer it. He was very calm now, Padme and he having put the matter to rest and deciding the shots were unintentional. Anakin still worried about being back on Tatooine, but he knew that with Padme there to comfort him, and his children to distract him and make him happy, he would be all right. For now, he was enjoying this peaceful moment, deep in Jedi meditation, trying to calm himself for the day to come.

Padme was sitting across from him, staring at him, amazed at how peaceful he had become. She had been looking out at the stars, but when she noticed that he was meditating, she had begun to watch him. She was always impressed by how even Anakin, who was usually so energetic and mischievous, could become so calm and wise looking when he chose to. It calmed her to watch him meditate, and she smiled lovingly at him. However, she wanted to talk to him, and wished that he would finish soon. She had always wished that she was the one able to calm him, not Jedi meditation. She wished he would talk to her, share his feelings, because she knew the trip to Tatooine would be difficult for him. She worried about Anakin seeing Tatooine again- she had been with him the last time they were here, and she knew the memory would be extremely sad for him. She hoped he would let her comfort him, but she knew better then to think he would- he would try to hide his feelings from her, and especially from the children. Obi Wan had told her that Anakin had become increasingly better at shielding his feelings through the Force, so that even Obi Wan, who had once sensed every emotion of Anakin's had trouble knowing just what his friend was thinking. She knew that if it was difficult for Jedi Masters to sense his feelings, she had no chance. But she felt as though Anakin was always comforting her, loving her, but she was never able to give him that same kind of support.

"Are you going to be all right with this, Anakin?" She asked, hating to interrupt but driven crazy by the silence. She hoped he might talk to her about it- she knew that he should.

Calmly, Anakin opened his eyes and looked at her. He smiled, but she suddenly felt even worse about interrupting him. She was about to apologize, when he answered her.

"I don't know," he said, his voice faltering, and it was more than Padme had expected. She really had though he would just say "yes" and shut her out. She took this as an opportunity, and walked over to him, sitting on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her, and she turned herself to the side so that she could look at his face. "I just wish…" He faded out, but she knew exactly what he was thinking about- his mother. She saw a tear in his eye, and squeezed his hand. She knew there was nothing she could say, but she put a hand on his cheek, and he gave her a small smile.

Anakin loved Padme so much- she always knew just what to say to him, and just when to say nothing. He knew this trip home would be difficult, but with her at his side he felt that he would be all right. She had brought his two children into the world, and would soon bring another, and his life on Coruscant was perfect, whether his past was or not. And this kept him going- kept him happy and full of love and dedication to helping others. He smiled at her again, and she kissed him.

"I'll be fine," He answered, and she noted that the confidence was back in his voice.

"She would be very proud of you Anakin," Padme said, smiling at him.

"I hope so," he answered, and gazed out at the stars. Suddenly, a thought struck Padme- she had only ever heard Anakin talk about his mother, but what of his father? She guessed he simply never knew him, and though she knew the time wasn't right to ask, she wanted to know. Anakin's life was so different from her own- she was amazed at what he had become, and extremely proud of him having gone from a slave boy to a Jedi Master. Could it be that he had never known his father? Could her children have a grandfather somewhere that they didn't know? Maybe Anakin didn't even know, but they could find him… and that would certainly make him happy, to know he had another relative in the world.

"Anakin?" She asked timidly, not wanting to bring back another painful memory for him, but needing to know.

"Yes, Angel?" He smiled, and played with a strand of her hair.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"I'm afraid it's not really the right time, but…" She hesitated, thinking that perhaps it was best to say nothing.

"Padme, any time is the right time for you to ask me something. Anything," He said warmly to her. And he really meant it; he loved just talking to her, being around her, at any time.

"Anakin, I met your mother, and you talk about her often, but…what about…?" She trailed off, unable to finish her question.

"My father?" Anakin finished for her, with the most peculiar expression on his face- it was a mix of sadness, remorse, confusion, but also of… amusement? She didn't know how to interpret it, and begged him with her eyes to continue. However, he was now staring off into space, and she had to ask him.

"Yes…did you ever know him?" As she said this, she hugged him tighter and snuggled into him, hoping she could comfort him in this way.

"No…" He answered, still staring away with a strange look on his face. He turned her face towards his, and stared into her eyes. "Padme…" He paused- how could he explain this to her? No one understood it, certainly not him, and to Padme it was a concept so foreign that it might even scare her. The last thing he wanted was for her to see him as some kind of stranger, or alien, that she no longer could understand.

She noticed that his face suddenly looked very worried and frightened, and she squeezed his hand.

"You don't have to tell me, if it's too hard. I didn't want to bring back another bad memory, Anakin, I'm so sorry…"

He looked at her again, and saw her eyes searching his for an explanation. "You didn't bring up an old memory, Padme…" He paused. "I don't have one."

"You have no memories of your father? Do you even know who he was?"

"No, I meant… I don't have one. A father."

"Well maybe we could find out who he was, somewhere… maybe he doesn't know about you either, and-"

"Padme," he cut her off. "This might be strange for you to hear, but hopefully you've come to expect strange things being married to me." He gave her a small smile, and she returned it. "Look at me," he said, and she did- he was now smiling at her, but in a distant way. "I didn't have a father, ever. There was no father, as my mother told Qui Gon and Obi Wan. It seems that…my life was created by the medichlorians, which is what led the Masters to believe that I was the Chosen One-that is how the prophecy goes, that's…that's _why_…" He looked at her, unsure of how she would react.

Padme stared at Anakin, not even able to comprehend her own feelings. Her immediate feeling was sadness for him- his life was truly so lonely before the Qui Gon found him… Anakin certainly was special, and only now did she fully comprehend why the Order saw him as so important, why they feared so much that he would succumb to the dark side. If the medichlorians created him- though she understood little about them- she knew that must mean that he was extremely attuned to the Force. Finally, she understood it all- why the entire atmosphere around him seemed to change depending on whether Anakin was angry or happy, why Anakin, as well as she, was constantly being warned about the power of the Force- perhaps, for the first time, she finally understood how powerful the Force really was.

"Anakin, I…" She really didn't know what to say.

"There's nothing to say," he said. "It simply is."

"So Luke and Leia…"

"Have no grandfather, I suppose they too, indirectly, were created by the Force. I should have told you this sooner, Padme, I'm sorry. I should have told you before we had children, because it affects them- it was irresponsible, but when was I supposed to tell you? It's not the kind of subject that comes up in normal conversation…"

"Anakin, I don't care about that, you and they are perfectly healthy and normal… well, healthy, at least," she teased him, and he laughed. "No wonder you're so…"

"Charming?" He teased.  
"Or, annoying," She smirked. "Actually, I was going to say powerful, but you're in that mood where you don't need any compliments." She frowned at him, and he gave her a passionate kiss. She laughed, and just as they were getting into it, a small voice interrupted them.

"Leia's not sleeping! Leia's not sleeping, she's- ahh!" Luke exclaimed, as he ran into the cockpit. "No kissing, no kissing!"

"That's _not allowed_ when we're here, I thought I said," Leia informed them, entering the room with a disgusted look at the audacity of her parents. "Now let's settle this debate diplomacy," Leia continued. Anakin stared at Leia, wondering where she could possibly have learned something like that.

"You mean diplomatically, Leia," Padme corrected, and suddenly Anakin understood.

"You've been teaching her politics!" He accused, unsure of what he really meant by that.

"I have not been teaching her anything, Anakin. And by the way, you're the one training your four-year-old to be a warrior, so don't accuse me of anything," She scolded, and he pouted at her. They both laughed, Luke and Leia still standing in front of them with their hands on their hips. "She just listens to me, and repeats what she hears," Padme explained. "The other day, Luke told me he wanted a vote of no confidence in C-3PO's cooking skills."

"Well I think we can all agree on that one," Anakin laughed. "Unfortunately, none of us can cook, so that leaves only him, Luke, I'm sorry."

"Well he's a droid, can't we program him to do it better, the way _I_ like it?" Luke asked.

"Now which parent does _he_ sound like?" Padme asked Anakin, and he frowned, defeated.

"What are we even talking about?" He asked, addressing the twins and trying to change the subject. "Why aren't you asleep?"

"Leia's not sleeping!" Luke accused.

"Neither are you, stupid," Leia said, rolling her eyes.

"But you were not sleeping first!" Luke continued.

"No, you woke me up!"

"No, you woke-"

"Ok," Padme said, cutting them off. "Enough, both of you go to sleep, we will be on Tatooine in the morning."

The twins stomped off to bed, pushing each other over every step of the way. Anakin and Padme rolled their eyes at them, amazed at how quickly their little personalities had developed.

"Where did they come from?" Padme asked, smiling at them as they walked off.

"Well, if you don't understand that even now, I can't help you," Anakin teased, and she rolled her eyes.

"I mean them, their personalities, you know," Padme said, frustrated, and Anakin laughed.

"We should get some sleep," he said. "We will be on…we will be there in the morning." Anakin walked out quickly, but Padme had noticed what he tried to cover up- he hadn't been able to say Tatooine. She followed him and found him gazing out at the stars at the back of the ship. She turned him around, and saw that he had tears in his eyes.

"Anakin," she exclaimed, pulling him into a tight and secure hug. "Why are you making yourself do this?"

"I'm fine," he responded, trying to be brave as always. "It's just… a lot of memories."

"Anakin, it's ok to be upset about this," she reassured him, but he just brushed it off, and smiled.

"3-PO," he yelled into a room where the droids had been playing holo-chess. "We're going to bed, the ship's course is set, keep an eye on it for us, all right?"

"Yes, Master Anakin," C-3PO responded. "Good night, and good night mistress Padme."

They wished the droid good night, and got ready for bed. As they snuggled in together, Padme turned toward Anakin.

"Anakin, I know you like to be brave, and strong, but I just want you to know that you are never less so in my eyes for being emotional about this. If you need someone to talk to, even though I know you don't like to, I'm here, ok?"

Anakin smiled at her. "I know you are, Padme. That's what keeps me able to deal with everything, knowing that you are there for me. I love you, that's why I'm all right," he said lovingly, and he kissed her on the forehead.

These words meant more to Padme than he could have realized- and they were enough for her. Now she knew that she did comfort him, that she was there for him as much as he was there for her- and with that, she fell asleep, peacefully in her husband's arms.

**Thanks** for the reviews! The story is going to get dramatic pretty soon. I have quite a little plot worked out in my head, so enjoy the fluff and happiness and then it will get intense, just so you know where it's going… To those who worried about Anakin, don't worry I would never make him evil, can't you tell yet that I love nice Anakin? But I do want him to still be the same Anakin, so his personality has to have that edge to it- and it will be definitely pushed in this story, but it will all turn out well, and then the last few chapters can be happy too. The next chapter will begin to get intense. Please Review, it keeps me writing! Enjoy…


	7. Chapter 7

**Ch. 7**

And so they arrived, finding themselves the next morning dragging two four year olds across the desert and into the little town in which Anakin had grown up. In a seeming paradox, it was actually easier to remain inconspicuous in the tiny village than it was on over-populated Coruscant. As long as both Anakin and Padme kept their hoods up, no one gave them a second glance as they trudged through the sand.

"You grew up here, daddy?" Luke asked sweetly.

"Yes," Anakin replied calmly.

"Lots of sand," Leia commented. "I don't like it."

"I don't either," Anakin agreed. He hated sand.

"Why did you leave daddy?" Luke asked.

"Because a Jedi Master named Qui Gon Jinn, and also Master Obi Wan, who was still just a Padawan at the time, came and found me. They saw that my blood was full of medichlorians, and decided to train me as a Jedi," Anakin explained, hoping this explanation would suffice for now.

"Master Obi Wan was just a Padawan? That must have been a looong time ago," Leia commented.

"It was only about twenty years ago Leia," Padme replied, and suddenly that sounded like a long time to her too. "Anakin!" She said, worriedly. "We're so old!"

Anakin laughed and gave her a kiss. "Do you feel old now?"

"Yes," Padme grumbled, but she smiled at him.

"Were you there too mommy?" Luke asked. "When they found daddy?"

"Yes," Padme told him. "I'm afraid it was because of my ship that we ended up here. But I'm awfully glad we did," she said, smiling at Anakin.

"Did you marry daddy here mommy?" Leia asked.

"No," Padme replied. "He was only nine when we found him."

"How old were you?"

"I was fourteen."

"You're older than daddy by _that much_?" Leia demanded, shocked.

"Five years isn't a very long time, Leia," Padme told her.

"It's older than me," Leia responded logically.

"That's… true," Padme responded, somewhat off put by Leia's revelation.

"But when you get to be older, it doesn't seem like such a long time, Leia," Anakin told his daughter. "Because we're at the same level of maturity-I don't think of her as older, and she doesn't see me as any younger than she is," he said, and for some reason Padme chose this moment to cough loudly. "Are you ok?" Anakin asked obliviously.

"Yes," she said, looking away from him with her hand over her mouth.

"Mommy's laughing," Luke reported.

"No, I'm not, just… sand in my throat," Padme said, recovering and looking back towards Anakin.

"Oh, I hate that," Anakin said, accepting her explanation. Padme bit her lip and smiled at him.

Very abruptly, Anakin stopped walking, and Luke, trailing behind him, bumped into his father's legs. As Padme turned to see what he was looking at, she realized suddenly that they were in front of Watto's shop. She grabbed Anakin's hand and squeezed it tightly, and he smiled at her gratefully. However, she could tell that he was fine, letting the Force sooth him and being the peaceful and calm Jedi Master that he was.

"What is it, daddy?" Leia asked.

"This is the shop that has the part we need for our ship," Anakin told her simply. "Well," he took a deep breath, "Let's go in. Luke, Leia," Anakin began, as they ducked into the store. "I used to-" He stopped short, staring in front of him. As soon as Padme turned her head, she understood why. A boy who looked about 12, with sandy blond hair and a confused expression on his face, stared back at them. Though he was older than Anakin had been, she couldn't help but think back to the first time she had laid eyes on her husband- and she knew Anakin was thinking the same thing. Anakin was silent for a long time, feeling more empathy for this boy than he had felt for anyone in his lifetime. It was like he was staring into his own eyes. It sickened him that Watto still kept slaves, even in the New Republic… Even the twins, who understood nothing of the situation, could sense through the Force that now was a good time to be very quiet. Padme's hand again found Anakin's, and her tender but cold touch brought Anakin out of his daze. He realized he had been staring at the boy for some time. Just as he was about to speak, the boy spoke first.

"Watto, customers!" He yelled in their native language. In Basic, he addressed the man in front of him. "I don't owe you nothin' do I?" He asked Anakin, obviously because he had been staring at him.

"No, I'm… I'm here to pick up a part…how old are you?" Anakin asked, unable to hold back his interest in the boy.

"I'm twelve, but some people say I could pass for fourteen and I like to pretend so. But I guess there's no reason to lie to you," he said defiantly, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Why is there reason to lie to anyone?" Padme questioned him, tenderly.

"Listen lady, you don't understand," was all he said. He turned and pretended to continue working on some repairs, but Anakin could sense his interest in them, and the boy kept peeking back at them as Watto entered.

Watto spoke in his own language, believing that none of his customers could understand him. "Boy, come here," he yelled gruffly, pausing to cough. "You know Idon't reallyliketo speak Basic, you talk to them."

"There is no need to bother him," Anakin said. He spoke in his native language, one he hadn't spoken or heard in years, and yet it still came naturally to him. The second he uttered the words, the boy whipped around, staring at him.

'Anakin Skywalker speaks this language?' The boy thought, for he had indeed recognized the Jedi hero. However, he wasn't one to buy into the glory and glamour of the Jedi and the Republic that everyone else seemed to see- he was more of a realist, knowing that he didn't have much of anopportunity in life. Instead of following the careers of Jedi and dreaming to be like them, he worked to survive for himself- he did what it took to find small things he could actually enjoy, instead of believing in the freedom and peace that was promised to everyone in the galaxy. Even at twelve, his hard life had left him this jaded. He didn't see why Anakin Skywalker would need any more recognition, so he had kept it to himself.

"I see the boy recognized me before you did," Anakin addressed Watto, having read the boy's thoughts without even realizing it. "And he's never even met me before." Again the boy's eyes seared into him, angry that his thoughts had been invaded.

"I apologize," Anakin said in Basic to the boy. "Your thoughts are very expressive. Sometimes it is hard not to listen- the Force is very strong."

"Listen, I don't know nothin' about this Force thing that everyone talks about," the boy said defensively. "But my thoughts are my own, ok?"

"Of course. I will block them from now on," Anakin said, smiling, determined to win over the boy with whom he had so much in common. However, the boy turned immediately back to his work, and Anakin could sense his frustration.

"Ani?" Watto asked suddenly just as he had ten years ago, the first time Anakin had reappeared on Tatooine.

"How does he know you, and how do you speak this language?" The boy blurted, though the second he allowed the words to pass his lips he looked angry with himself for showing any interest in the famous Jedi. However, he would be glad to have the mystery solved.

Anakin turned to the boy, seriously. "I, too, grew up a slave here," Anakin said, and the boy stared at him. "I grew up working in this very shop, until the Jedi came- they found that my blood was high in medichlorians, and managed to win me from Watoo. That is how I came to be on Coruscant and train as a Jedi. So you see," Anakin said, eyeing the boy in front of him. "Hope and freedom do exist. And again, I apologize for reading your thoughts, but I want to help you."

The boy's blue eyes again peered at Anakin suspiciously. How could he want to help, they had only just met- he knew not to trust strangers, even if they were famous Jedi. " I do fine for myself," He said defensively. "And I didn't grow up here...I was just found, and taken here, just last year. So we ain't got that much in common, all right? Why would you want to help me anyway..."

"Because," Anakin said warmly, placing his hand firmly on the boy's shoulder. "I do understand."

Despite himself, the boy smiled. Suddenly, a look of sadness came over his face, and he dove back into his work, pretending to ignore the party in front of him.

'I will try my hardest to rescue you as the benevolent Jedi did me when they found me,' Anakin told him through the Force. The boy stared at him, astonished that he was communicating with him through his mind. 'I am sorry, but Watto musn't hear,' Anakin explained. 'Even if you are not Force sensitive, a Jedi, if he chooses, can communicate with you like this.' The boy glared at him again, but the glare was less icy than those that had preceded it.

"I need a part for a ship, Watto," Anakin said simply, turning to his former owner. "That is why I am here, I knew that only you would have it. Otherwise, I would not have come back."

"Why is daddy speaking a funny language?" Luke asked, suddenlyjoltedout of the trance that the twins had been in since entering this shop and witnessing the very strange scene unfold in front of them.

"It is the language I grew up speaking, Luke," Anakin explained to him, and Luke nodded. Padme smiled at Anakin- she had always found it charming when he spoke it, as if he was an innocent little boy once again.

"Of course, Ani," Watto said. "What do you need?"

Anakin explained it to him, all the while only half paying attention to what he was saying to Watto. As Luke and Leia hid behind Anakin's legs, he watched the boy through his mind- his eyes always focused on Watto. He could sense something strange in him- he knew it was a kind of presence that he had felt before, but was unable to place it.

"We will need somewhere to stay tonight," Anakin said loudly, still staring at Watto. He smiled as he felt the boy's attention towards him heighten. "I hope nearby," he said.

"The boy has room," Watto said simply, immediately receiving the same icy glare that they had all now witnessed so many times. With that, Watto disappeared in the back to look for the part.

"That would be perfect," Anakin said, eyeing his new host. He turned to his family. "How would you like to stay with this young gentleman for the night?"

"Anakin, are you sure that's all right?" Padme asked worriedly.

"Is it all right for us all to stay?" Anakin asked the boy.

"Yes," was the begrudging answer. "Though," his voice faltered, and Anakin couldn't tell whether he simply was trying to get out of playing host, or whether he was feeling some kind of sadness. "It is a small place, just one of the slave apartmentsfor me. I have no family," he said, and Anakin stared at him, unable to stop feeling extreme empathy towards the boy who was so much like him in so many ways. However, he quickly caught himself and again put on his calm and noble demeanor.

"We do not require much," Anakin replied.

"Even the Chancellor?" The boy asked.

"You know of my wife?" Anakin asked him.

"Yes," grumbled the boy, angry with himself for giving any recognition to the most famous couple in the galaxy. "Your highness," he said, almost sarcastically, and Padme and Anakin exchanged a look.

"There is no need to call me that," Padme said awkwardly.

"You were a queen," came the flustered response.

"But I am not any more," she said firmly, and the boy again turned back to his work.

Watto reappeared from the back of the shop. "I can have it ready for you tomorrow," he informed them.

"We will be back in the morning to pick it up," Anakin replied. "Thank you."

"Thank you Ani," Watoo said, almost kindly. "It is… good to see you again, and to see your family."

"Yes," Anakin said, unable to honestly return the sentiment. It wasn't exactly "good" to see his former slave owner again. "Thank you." Anakin managed a smile.

Anakin turned to the boy, who stood awkwardly in front of them with a look of insubordination on his face.

"Are you going to show us where we will be staying tonight?" Anakin asked him.

"Yeah, but don't be expectin' me to hang around or nothin'. I have my own life, you know."

"What do you do?"

"I take care of myself, that's what," he answered, and with that he turned, leading them quickly away.

"I want to help him, Padme," Anakin said quietly to her.

"How, Anakin. It's obvious he doesn't want any help," she told him, though compassion was obvious in her eyes.

"Exactly why he needs it," was all Anakin said, leaving the matter to rest for a while.

"Make yourselves at home, just don't go snoopingaround ornothin'," were their orders for the night. "Now I gotta go, I'll be back later. Um… enjoy," and with that, their young host was gone.

The Skywalkers passed a calm and peaceful evening together, and Anakin explained his upbringing to his children. They were full of questions, as always, but the discussion was not as hard as Anakin had expected- in fact, he felt relieved to have told them, and for four year olds, they demonstrated great understanding, their responses almost poignant. They found that the apartment contained three rooms, the boy's own bedroom, a tiny extra room that he seemed to use for storage, and a main room with a couch and a tiny kitchen area. They put the children to sleep in the small room on a makeshift bed, they themselves preparing to sleep on the couch. Fairly late in the night, the boy came back, muttered a few words to them, and went to his own room. With that, the household went to sleep.

Suddenly, in the middle of the night, Anakin sat bolt upright, his Force senses reeling with a sense of danger. He shook Padme violently, though, as he had grown in his strength and maturity with the Force, he appeared outwardly calm and contained despite the turmoil he felt in his head. She turned to stare at him, having been jarred out of a deep sleep.

"Something's wrong," Anakin announced to her, firmly.

"What is it?"

"The twins," he said, "They're in trouble." Padme's heart shattered- these words from his lips were the exact ones she had been dreading since the moment that Anakin Skywalker had gotten her pregnant- she knew that they and all of their friends worried about the twins more than one would with normal children, for so many different reasons. And she knew that something was now terribly wrong. Before she could say anything, Anakin was up and staring in to the room where they had put the twins. He turned back to her, and his face told her everything. He said nothing, and beat down the door of the boy's room.

"Gone," he said, and with an intense look that told Padme to follow him immediately, he stormed out of the house, his hand already on the hilt of his light saber.

Ok, I promised dramatic and here it comes… warning: this will be mysterious and twist around a lot; especially with who seems bad/good, suspect/innocent, what are the motives…this is just the beginning. I do have a plan… Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I like happy endings. So you can look forward to the light at the end of the tunnel. But forget that for now, and pretend everything's going to be bad.


	8. Chapter 8

**Ch. 8**

Anakin pulled Padme through the dark streets of Tatooine, his hand gripped on the hilt of his light saber, ready to pull it out and fight at any time. Padme let the tears fall from her eyes, for the first time ever unsure of where her children were, if they were safe… if they were even alive, though Anakin's manner told her they were. She didn't know what Anakin's plan was, or what he was doing, but he seemed to have some idea, and so she followed, blindly, crying and stumbling through the streets behind the one person she knew she could trust in the galaxy.

Anakin searched for something, thought it was unclear what. His eyes raced back and forth in every direction, and his mind, unseen, probed the Force for feelings of disturbance, and for his children's' weak but existent Force signals. However, his frustrated grunts showed that he wasn't finding whatever it was he searched for. Something led him to Watto's shop, he was unsure what but he felt that it was the right place to go. He put his finger to his lips, telling Padme to be silent. Stealthily, he slipped into the back of the shop, leaving Padme near enough to sense at all times, just behind the door. He entered completely unnoticed, a true Jedi Master at work, and immediately saw an astonishing scene unfolding. In his native language, Watto was yelling at the boy, and, uncharacteristically, the boy was letting the tears fall from his face, showing his extreme vulnerability. It was the first time he had truly looked like a twelve-year-old boy, instead of one weary of life and hardened to the universe.

"How could you let this happen?" Watto spat at the boy.

"It's not my fault!" The boy yelled, defiance peeking through even this most vulnerable moment for him.

"Do you realize what this means? The Chancellor's children missing? Anakin Skywalker's children? You'll have the entire Jedi order and Republic after you, they'll throw you in jail, or kill you- but what's worse, _I_ will be associated with this. I am responsible for you, and now you have brought this upon me. I want you to go, you have no home here, no work here, any more. And don't once mention my name to anyone you may encounter, or I will kill you." Watto slapped the boy hard, and the boy held his cheek, still crying.

"You don't understand-" The boy attempted again.

"I understand," Watto spat at him. "You'll use any means to get what you want, what you need- to keep yourself comfortable. Not thinking about who you put in danger… now look, we'll be held responsible for whatever happens to the Skywalker twins." Watto was fuming, fluttering madly around the store.

"No, There's no way to trace this to me, I-" Again he was cut off.

"The Jedi will find a way, I can promise you that."

"Why would I have even come to you if I did anything wrong?" The boy pleaded.

"I ought to just kill you now, and be done with the matter," Watto said, pondering the blaster he held in his hand. "You have disgraced the entire village…" He raised the blaster, and pointed it at the boy in front of him. Just as he was about to shoot, a light saber burst into the scene and cut the blaster out of his hand.

"This village was already disgraced, the second someone brought a slave to it," Anakin spat at his former owner. "Do not harm him."

"Surely you have discovered that your children are missing?" Watto said in a very harsh tone.

"Why should I not suspect _you_," Anakin spat, his eyes blazing with anger. Padme watched it all in incomprehensible silence- she didn't understand the language they were speaking, but she understood Anakin's tone, and though she knew it was for their children, it scared her. She just hoped that Anakin would not let his anger get the better of him, as he had come so close to doing so many times. "Get out of here!" Anakin yelled, his light saber ready to strike Watto, though he knew the creature wasn't to blame. Watto didn't hesitate to flutter away.

"Don't you ever come back to me," he yelled at the boy as he left.

The boy turned to Anakin, about to thank him, when the humming blade was at his throat.

"What did you do with them?" Anakin demanded, pulling on the boy's tunic with his hands. "Where are they?"

"Anakin!" Padme yelled. "Don't-"

"Let me handle this, Padme," Anakin spat, holding her back with the Force. "Where are they?" he asked the boy again, and the defiant glare was back in the boy's eyes.

"I didn't do it," spat the boy. "I knew I didn't like Jedi," he mumbled, as he tried to twist away from the weapon in front of him.

"You know something," Anakin told him, and it wasn't a question. "What happened to them?"

"It's not my fault!" the boy said again, holding his own will power strongly against the Jedi.

"It would be in your best interest," Anakin threatened, bringing his light saber closer to the boy's throat, "To tell me whatever you know."

"Leave me alone," the boy said. "You don't know nothin' about me. I might gamble and a might cheat, but I ain't no kidnapper and I wouldn't hurt those kids. Let me go!"

Anakin stared at the boy, and the boy stared just as intensely at Anakin. Anakin saw the sincerity in the boy's eyes, but he couldn't believe that he hadn't been involved. The boy knew something, and he _would_find out, no matter what the cost.

"Anakin," Padme said again, more tenderly this time. "Please, don't do anything stupid."

Anakin turned to her, not loosening his grip on the boy. "He knows something, Padme," He said. "And I _will_ find out what. This is our children we're talking about," he said, his eyes softening a bit, pleading with her. "We don't want to take any chances," he said more angrily, directing the last comment at the boy.

"You don't know that he knows anything, Anakin. He's just a child," she said, tears streaming down her face. She saw the boy give her a pleading look of thanks, and more than ever he looked very young and scared.

Anakin turned back to the boy in front of him. He glared once again into the boys eyes, then angrily threw him to the ground, sighing. "Let's go then," he said to Padme. "I'm not going to just wait around so that they can be taken farther and farther away."

"What about him?" Padme asked, but Anakin's intensity told her to forget it. She sighed, and walked out. Anakin looked back at the boy, this time with a look of compassion and remorse, and they locked gazes for several seconds. The boy saw, surprisingly, tears fill the eyes of the Jedi Master in front of him. As this happened, Anakin turned quickly and stormed out of the shop.

Anakin grabbed Padme's hand, and this time the two ventured more slowly out into the night to find their children.

"Wait," they heard a small but determined voice say from behind them. They turned, and the boy, covered in sand and blood, with tears in his eyes, stared at them with a seriousness far beyond his years. "I can help you," he said resignedly.

He approached them cautiously, eyeing Anakin's hand as it traveled dangerously close to his light saber. Padme's hand was quick to intertwine with her husband's, preventing it from completing its path to the light saber. She put her arm around the boy's shoulder, and smiled at him. However, he shook it off, again with a look of rebelliousness- though it had softened since the first time they saw it.

"First things first, I ain't guilty," he said, staring both at Anakin and Padme, in turn, to make sure they understood. "So don't go pointing that thing at me again," he said, eyeing Anakin's light saber.

"If you aren't guilty," Anakin said angrily, with Padme restraining him. "Why would you run away and not tell us that something was wrong?"

"Look, I don't have to explain myself to you," the boy said. "Do you want my help or not?"

"Those who are innocent never flee," Anakin recited an old Jedi proverb, challenging the boy as if they were equals, ignoring Padme's warning look at him.

"I didn't do it!" The boy yelled, staring straight at Anakin, and Anakin grabbed him again, unable to contain himself.

"Anakin!" Padme screamed, but it was no use.

"Why did you run?" Anakin demanded again, glaring. The boy struggled intensely to get away, but finally responded contentiously.

"I was trying to help them," he spat, then looked down, hoping with all his heart that Master Skywalker would feel great remorse for having suspected him, as he should. Anakin immediately loosened his grip, seeing the utter sincerity in the boy's eyes. The issue hadn't been of guilt, but of pride. The boy, who fancied himself so tough and indestructible, had been reluctant to admit that he had felt compassion for the children. Still, Anakin was angry that he hadn't told them.

"Why wouldn't you wake us up?" He asked, still obviously upset. "Why would you try to keep it from us?"

"I thought…" the boy began, glaring at him again. "I thought I could catch them myself, and get them back without you knowing, because…because I didn't want you to find out, see…"

"You are involved, aren't you?" Anakin asked, again livid.

"No!" The boy said immediately, again glaring at him. "But… See, what I do at night is I gamble, play Sabaac and stuff like that… I'm real good at it, and I win… sometimes, though, when you get a couple drinks in you, you start to talk to the people you're playing, right… and I uh, I may have let it slide that your family was at my house, and uh… well I was playin' a real shady creature, hood up and all, and I'm kinda afraid he's the one who took your kids- he seemed real interested in them. But it ain't my fault." He said stubbornly.

"You gamble and drink at your age?" Padme asked, trying to contain her impulse to give this boy a hug. She couldn't imagine the kind of life he'd had to lead him to this.

"Like I said, I'm much more mature than my age. You have to be, living like me. I just do what I have to do to get by, ok? Look, I thought he was just some local guy, maybe he wanted a ransom or something, and I'm pretty tough, especially with the locals, 'cuz I'm not from around here… anyway, I thought I could catch him and get them back easy, then no one would have to know I'd let some information like that slide. But when I ran after them, there were a bunch of 'em, and they took off across the desert in speeders. And that's all I know…" He paused, looking at them sincerely. "I'm sorry, really I am. But I ain't guilty, all right?"

They paused, staring at this boy in front of them who had seen and experienced so much for his very young age- both Anakin and Padme couldn't help but feel sadness for him, but still, he had been very irresponsible. Of course, what could you expect from a twelve year old, but to be manipulated by the scum found in the bars of Tatooine…

"You should have told us," Anakin said. "I could have stopped them."

"I know," was all the boy said, and Anakin could tell he meant it.

"Do you know where they were going?" Asked a very worried Padme.

"I _think_," the boy said. "I'm not sure now, but, I think they were taking them to the Hutts…" Anakin and Padme stared at each other- this was bad. The Hutts were not exactly compassionate beings, even with children- especially with children, in fact, because children were of no use to them.

"Well then, that's where we'll go," Anakin stated.

"If you have a way to get there, I can take you as far as Jabba's palace on Tatooine. But if you're going further into Hutt Space, I want passage into the core. I can't go gettin' involved, or anything." However, his last statement didn't have the confidence the rest of his comments held- they could tell he had nowhere to go, and Anakin knew that getting involved certainly wasn't the worst thing the boy could think of.

"I know the way," Anakin said, and somehow all three understood that this had more meaning than Anakin had intended.

Without a word, all three were soon aboard Anakin and Padme's ship, preparing to fly across the planet to Jabba's palace. The boy watched in awe as Anakin flew the ship, amazed at how well the Jedi Master could fly, especially just above the ground like this. Padme brought a blanket and some food to the boy, who ate it ravenously, still staring as Anakin flew.

"We could use you, you know," Anakin said, sensing the boy's interest in him. "Where else do you have to go?"

"I keep to myself, all right?" The boy said, though his voice wavered.

"You're just twelve," Padme said, compassionately. "We can help you, you must have parents somewhere…"  
"None," The boy said, closing the matter.

"Then why not help us?" Anakin asked him, and the boy gave no answer. "We can take care of you…"

"I don't need to be taken care of," the boy retorted, sitting stubbornly with his arms across his chest. The matter was left to rest for now, and no one spoke. Padme let silent tears streak down her face, desperately hoping they would find the children soon, and that they would be all right. She approached Anakin, and he gave her a hug, though it wasn't reassuring- she could tell that Anakin was as worried as she was.

"We _will_find them," he told her, and finally they put the ship back on the ground a few hundred meters from Jabba's palace.

"Do you know how to use a blaster?" Anakin asked the boy.

"Anakin, he's twelve!" Padme protested.

"Yes," said the boy. "I have to defend myself, you know."  
"Take these," Anakin said, giving each of them a blaster, "and stay here. If _anything_out of the ordinary happens, send a message to my comlink and to Coruscant, and then hide."

With a goodbye kiss to Padme, and reassurance that he would find the twins and be back soon, Anakin was gone, running across the sand to sneak into Jabba's palace and search for his children.


	9. Chapter 9

**Ch. 9**

Luke and Leia sat bolt upright in the makeshift bed their parents had prepared for them, both suddenly aware of movement in their little room. A hand reached for each of their mouths, but before it could grab them a training light saber, built only to stun, paralyzed each intruding hand. Unfortunately, the hands had accomplices, and soon enough the twins were dragged through the window by a large group of cloaked figures, one stumbling behind the group, his arms hanging limply at his sides. As soon as they were on the sandy street, the twins struck again, at exactly the same moment, paralyzing their respective captors and twisting away. As they ran back towards the window from which they had been abducted, they turned to block as many shots from the stun blasters as they could. Suddenly, their young host came running silently but determinedly out of his house. He held a blaster, but, though extremely brave, he was no match in ability, size or experience for the figures around them. He managed to hit several of the arms and legs around him, but delivered no deadly or truly compromising shots- he was stunned quickly and fell to the ground. Even the Skywalker twins, though skilled for four year olds, could not ward off every blast. They managed to temporarily paralyze several of their captors, able to synchronize their attack communicating mentally through the Force. In fact, they both felt exhilarated by the fact that they were experiencing their first real battle. However, they soon fell to the ground too, and the frustrated captors stalked off with their prize.

"You told us it would be easy," grumbled a cloaked figure with a deep voice. "No one said anything about them being little Jedi."

"The reward will be worth it," said a raspy, eerie voice from beneath a black hood, no face visible underneath.

"My arms are paralyzed," commented another who had been similarly uninformed as the first objector.

"In time, the feeling will return," reassured the mysterious figure, obviously the leader of at least this small group.

"What if they had been real light sabers?" Asked a third, nursing a paralyzed leg and trying to stumble along with the group.

"I knew they would not be. Now please, silence," the leader again displayed his authority, and the group walked along in silence, those who had not suffered casualties carrying the small children slung over their backs.

"Won't the Jedi come looking, if these are Padawans?" Asked an inquisitive member of the group, unable to keep quiet his curiosity.

"Well, I should certainly hope so," came the daunting reply from the leader, a chuckle, or really a cackle, emitted from deep within the recesses of the hood. The cloaked group continued on, finally in perfect silence. They loaded their cargo carefully on board of several high quality land speeders- carefully, but not at all softly or tenderly. Soon enough, the entire group flew across the sand, speeders set to be completely silent, and the black figures disappeared into the night.

Padme sat in Anakin's pilot seat on the ship, hugging her knees to her chest, silent tears running down her face. She was snuggled in one of Anakin's cloaks, for it was the only thing that could bring any sort of comfort to her, though nothing could conquer the devastation she was feeling inside. She knew that the situation must be more serious than they had originally thought, or else Anakin would be back with their babies already. Neither she nor Anakin had been truly worried at first- so war-torn was the entire family that things like this were expected. However, usually Anakin seemed to be able to fix things, but now he was taking a long time. And now, it was her children in danger, and not the random creatures of the galaxy. She couldn't bear to lose them, she couldn't even imagine it- life without them simply wouldn't happen, she would just collapse and curl in to a ball and never move again… much like she wanted to do right now. She just hoped beyond hope that the Jedi would find Luke and Leia, and bring them back to her quickly, and that Anakin would return to her soon as well.

The boy was in the back of the ship- he had discovered several minor problems with the ships navigation system and hyper drive, and had decided to put himself to the task of restoring the ship to perfect condition. Plus, he hadn't much liked dealing with the weeping pregnant woman in the front- though he had let her give him a hug for a little while. He had soon brushed her off, somewhat awkwardly, and gone to the back to 'see about the hyper drive.' Padme didn't mind, as long as he kept busy he seemed to be happier, less worried- she hoped that she could help him find a good path in life for himself…

She hugged her stomach, in it the one child that remained with her, her unborn child, silently hoping she would never lose sight of this one, ever. She knew that this new child needed its brother and sister, and more intensely that she and Anakin needed them. She knew that like her, Anakin would not be able to continue life if his precious angels were lost- he loved them all so much, but one thing about Anakin was his attachment and intense love and sense of possession that he felt for them. It was exactly how he had been so nervous of losing her nearly five years ago…and she knew he wouldn't be able to deal with losing the twins. Of course, she wouldn't either, how could she, these two little people had become the most important part of Anakin and her lives…She knew he would find them, the Jedi would catch the bad creature that had taken them… the Jedi always fixed what went wrong… right?

Anakin crept silently up toward the giant metal door of Jabba's palace, careful to make sure that no one was around him. Just as he lifted his hand angrily upwards to barge through the door using the Force, he heard voices in the distance, very faintly. In fact, he wasn't sure if he actually heard them or if he was sensing them through the Force, but something told him that the voices would lead him in the right direction. He turned, and hugging the sides of the building, walked around its periphery until he saw some kind of a struggle taking place.

He saw several figures apparently arguing with each other, all standing in between several speeders on the sand and the hangar door, which hung wide open as a back entrance to the palace. Creatures ran back and forth from the speeders into the palace, bringing cargo and supplies onto the speeders. Several of them seemed to be in an intense verbal argument, occasionally pushing or shoving one another. Anakin couldn't tell what they were arguing about, but they seemed to be smugglers of Jabba's. Whether or not his children were with them was unclear to him. He snuck closer to the group, and hid in between speeders parked haphazardly in a cluster around the hangar door. Peering into the speeders, he didn't see any signs of the twins anywhere- he assumed they had already been taken inside.

Suddenly, the creatures began to separate, half of them heading towards the speeders and the other half retiring into the palace. Seeing his chance to sneak into the palace undetected, Anakin ducked under the hangar door, as several of the creatures sped away on the speeders.

As he wandered the halls, he tried to think of possible motives for the Hutt's desire of his twins, but none came to mind except a ransom. He and Padme certainly never had to worry about money, but they weren't exactly the kind of billionaires whose children people would kidnap just for the money. A political agenda was an obvious reason for kidnapping the Skywalker children, and with anyone other than the Hutts he would have immediately jumped to that conclusion- however, the Hutts lived more outside the law than against it, and weren't ever looking to get involved in serious intergalactic politics. He didn't suspect that they would have taken the children just to get a political agenda taken care of. He knew there must be some further motive, but explanation failed him.

He knew that confronting Jabba outright was not an option, and so he snuck down to the dungeons, peering into each cell so stealthily that none of the prisoners noticed him. But nowhere did he see his children. Growing increasingly frustrated, Anakin reached out with the Force, stretching his sensitivity to its limit, and still felt no sign of the small Force signals with which he had become so familiar.

Until this point, Anakin had not been honestly worried about the situation. He had truly believed it was some sort of local, spur of the moment kidnapping, inspired by the boy letting it slide that the Skywalkers were in town. He had figured that he would be able to handle it easily. Now, however, unable to find his children anywhere in the village or in Jabba's palace, he was growing increasingly discouraged and worried. He had seen speeders right outside of Jabba's palace that matched perfectly the description of those the boy had described as taking the twins from the village… they had to be here! If they weren't, it would mean that those speeders outside… that they had taken them somewhere else, and the only 'else' he could think of was in space…

The sudden anxiety of not even knowing what planet his children were on gave Anakin a momentary panic attack, which soon subsided into extreme anger. Who could take his children away like this? He and Padme had had such a wonderful life with the twins, for the first time ever Anakin had had a real family, and had been truly happy with both his personal life and his work as a Jedi, and now someone had to ruin everything. Ruin his peace, his happiness, put his children's lives in danger…but also to bring back this feeling, this feeling of hate and anger that he so hated, that he wanted so much to leave him forever.

He could feel that his children simply were not in the palace, and thus he knew that his only remaining option was to quit the palace just as stealthily as he had entered it, and try to follow the speeders he had seen outside. Hopefully, they weren't all gone yet. If they were, he really didn't know what he would do. He expertly navigated his path back to the hangar door through which he had entered, and noticed that one speeder remained, parked haphazardly across the entrance.

The occupant of the speeder was hastily jumping out of it, staring around him- obviously lost from the group, or… on the lookout? Could it be that they had detected him? No, that was impossible. Anakin quickly sent that thought out of his head. They would have positioned someone on the lookout no matter what, especially in an operation as seemingly important as this… He watched the figure in front of him begin to hastily walk away from the speeder, as if searching for something. Suddenly, the figure seemed to disappear into the shadows, puzzled, Anakin wondered how anyone in this area other than he could have been that clandestine. Just in _case_, if there was anyway, it was a Force sensitive being- for that seemed to be one possible explanation for the stealth of this creature, Anakin put all of his Force shields up, blocking his mind and Force signal off completely- a trick he had perfected under Obi Wan's helpful tutelage over the past few years of having nothing really to do on Coruscant, and one he was quite proud of. He snuck through the shadows, in the direction of the other being, too intrigued to put the matter to rest. Looking around him, he still saw nothing, and he felt no presence near him either. This was very strange, to say the least. He put his hand on his light saber hilt.

Suddenly, he backed into something, hard. Rubbing his back and whipping around with his light saber, he found, to his shock, another blade instantly ready to meet his. But this blade wasn't red…

"Obi Wan?" Anakin asked, stunned.


	10. Chapter 10

**Ch. 10**

Padme sat hugging her knees in the cockpit of the ship, staring out into the dark night. She prayed that Obi Wan would soon arrive, having called him immediately upon seeing Anakin run into Watto's shop and threaten the boy. She knew that Anakin would need the support of his friend, and his help, in order to find their children. But also, she knew Obi Wan should be there to help Anakin control himself, to not let his emotions get the better of him. Anakin had become increasingly calm and passive in the past years, but this was an extreme situation, and even she found herself blaming everyone in her path, worried sick about the twins. She had no idea where Obi Wan had been when she contacted him, but he had assured her he would arrive soon, even though flying to Tatooine from Coruscant was a whole days trip at least.

Suddenly, a commotion outside interrupted her thoughts and she turned quickly to the scene taking place about a mile from them, across the sand. Because all of the surrounding area was flat, she could easily see the lights blinking at her about a mile from there, though the distance was almost impossible to judge in the dark of the night. The boy leapt into the cockpit, staring at her with wide-eyed surprise.

"I think that's them!" he exclaimed, and she immediately stood up, straining her eyes to see what was going on ahead. Dawn was approaching, but the sky was still very dark. She could just vaguely see a large group of speeders approaching a deep space ship. The figures around it were in a fluster, packing supplies and themselves onto the ship hurriedly. Before she could even think, the door to the cockpit was open and the boy was running stealthily but quickly across the sand.

"Wait!" Padme called, but it was too late. He hastily approached them, being careful not to be detected. Just as the ship was taking off, she saw him jumping into the cargo hold, essentially smuggling himself on board. What he planned to do, she had no idea, but worry consumed her. What could a twelve year old possibly do, but get himself in to trouble as well?

Suddenly, a light began to blink in front of her, on the ship's map of planet systems used for navigation. She noticed the light hovered over Tatooine, then moved just outside of Tatooine's atmosphere, then up into space… It was the ship that had just taken off! The boy must have snuck a tracking device on board with him… Suddenly, Padme was extremely grateful to this young boy who was quickly becoming a young hero. She wanted to take off immediately and follow him, but she knew she had to wait for Anakin…she thought sadly of her poor husband, in a futile search of Jabba's palace, when she knew that their children were being carried farther and farther out into space, alone… well, not alone, the boy was there, though she still didn't know what he could actually do. Tears streamed down her face as she stared into the dark blue dawn, when suddenly she was engulfed in a warm and friendly hug.

Taken off guard, she jumped, and heard a familiar voice in her ear.

"I'm sorry, milady," said her husband's former Master. "I didn't mean to startle you, I thought you had seen me approach."

"Oh Obi Wan," she murmured, suddenly realizing how much she had needed a friend. She collapsed into his arms, crying on his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry Padme," he said, rubbing her back soothingly. "I promise you, we will find them…now… Where is Anakin?"

"Obi Wan, Anakin's in the palace but the boy saw them and he jumped on board and I didn't know what he was doing but he has a tracking device but I can't leave until-"

"Shh, shh…" Obi Wan said, hardly able to decipher the senator's rushed words through her tears. "I will find Anakin, he's at the palace?"  
"Yes, but you must bring him immediately back here, because the boy is on the ship and…"

"Who is the boy?"  
"I don't know, we found him…" she trailed off, unsure of really how to explain the boy. "I'll explain when you get back, you must find Anakin now, please!"

"Of course," Obi Wan assured her, and, quickly as he had arrived, he was gone into the morning mist, stealthily approaching the palace to find his friend.

"Where are we going?" Demanded the young girl Padawan. The guard groaned, trying desperately to ignore her and her brother's incessant complaining and pleading. He wished he could just knock them out, but he was under strict orders to keep them safe.

"My daddy will not stand for this!" Luke said, echoing his mother's commonly used political statement.

"He will come save us, you know," Leia told the guard, almost taunting him. "Because you're just a bunch of big stupid meanies but my daddy is a Jedi Master and he will kill you all!"

The guard actually gulped in nervousness at this last comment. No one had told him that the man they were hoping would come in search of these children was a Jedi Master. He didn't know the motive or the reason for this mission, all he knew was he was getting paid to watch these stupid kids and make sure they didn't escape on the trip to Kashyyyk. From there, he had no idea where they were going or what was to be done with them, and he didn't care. He just wanted this mission to be over as soon as possible- and it was quickly proving to not be worth the sum he was getting paid.

"I'm thirsty," Luke said for the tenth time, poking at the guard. "Aren't you supposed to give us food and water?"

"No," the guard answered, unsure of when or if the children would get fed at all.

"But you aren't supposed to kill us, and we could die of thirst or hunger, so shouldn't you give it to us?" Leia, ever manipulative, asked.

"Later," mumbled the guard.

"What's your name?" Luke asked. "I'm going to report you to the Council as soon as I get back."  
"You're not going back," the guard laughed meanly.

"My daddy will save us!" Luke said. "And his friends."  
"Don't be so sure, he'll be walking into a trap," said the guard, realizing right away that he had said too much, even to four year olds.

"What do you mean?" Leia asked. "How a trap?"

"Shut up!" The guard said, threatening her with his blaster.

"You can't hurt us!" Leia taunted him. "You said so."  
Suddenly he wished he had never said so- he had told them that he had to keep them safe in a desperate attempt to stop their crying and screaming. They had screamed for hours, and he had a bad headache, so finally he said he wouldn't hurt them, that he couldn't. However, this only encouraged them to be the audacious young Padawans that they were, teasing and mocking and complaining all the time. No, this was definitely not worth the money.

"My arms hurt," Leia complained- their arms were tied loosely but firmly together, behind their backs. However, the captors hadn't accomplished this easily- the twins had fought and struggled bravely and fiercely for at least a half an hour until the many grown creatures around the four year olds could get them tied up.

"That's not the only thing that's going to hurt if you don't shut up!" The guard yelled, at the end of his rope. He jabbed at them with a long pole that resembled a javelin.

"I told you not to hurt them," said a creepy voice behind him. He shivered- The Master.

"I'm sorry, but they wouldn't-" He tried to defend himself, but was cut off.

"They're worth nothing to us unless they are alive- only then can they be used as bait."

"Are you aware that their father is a Jedi Master?" Asked the annoyed and nervous guard.

"Of course," was the darkly amused reply. "These are Anakin Skywalker's children."

"What?" The guard exclaimed, and a few others surrounding them turned at the sudden revelation. "We'll all be killed! How could you dare to capture the Skywalker twins… with their mother as the Chancellor and their father Anakin… Anakin Skywalker, the whole galaxy will be looking for them! Skywalker will be so angry, don't you realize he'll stop at nothing to get them back?"  
The Master smiled from beneath the clock of his hood, grinning menacingly-"Precisely," he cackled, then turned quickly and walked away.


	11. Chapter 11

**A.N. Some people seemed to be confused- it was Obi Wan who Anakin found, the scene in Ch. 10 shifted back in time to when Obi Wan arrived on Tatooine, to explain why he was there- he talked to Padme first, then went off to find Anakin, which is how he wound up there in Ch. 9-it's sort of confusing, I realize, some got it some didn't so I just wanted to clarify. Now this continues from where Ch. 9 left off, when Anakin found Obi Wan.**

**Ch. 11**

"How could you?" Anakin asked through gritted teeth, his light saber raised to his former Master's neck.

"What?" Obi Wan exclaimed, honestly confused about what Anakin meant. Suddenly, the meaning dawned on him. "Anakin, you can't possibly think I actually had something to do with this, Anakin, I… how could you even think that?"  
Anakin's eyes shifted to the speeder, the palace, and the sense of betrayal and confusion was obvious in them.

"Anakin, no, you know I would never…"

"How else do you explain your presence here," Anakin asked, still threatening Obi Wan.

"Anakin, please, calm down," Obi Wan said, trying to back away from him. "Padme called me, Anakin. She told me where you were, I'm only here to help."

"Padme…" Anakin muttered, his light saber suddenly lowering, though whether this was voluntary or not was unclear- his whole body had become weak and numb as the truth of the situation dawned on him. He had just been accusing his best friend of kidnapping his children, when really he just wanted to help…

Suddenly, Obi Wan found Anakin Skywalker, one of the most powerful Jedi of all time and most prone to masking his emotions with anger and rage, sobbing on his shoulder. After a moment of shock, Obi Wan put his arms around his friend and hugged him tightly.

"It will be ok, Anakin. I promise you, we will find them," he said reassuringly, a tear in his own eye upon seeing his friend's vulnerability.

"How could someone," Anakin asked in tears, "want to hurt two little children? What did they… what did they ever do to anyone?" He stared at Obi Wan, and for the first time ever Obi Wan noticed a feeling of helplessness and insecurity radiating from his former Padawan. He had never seen Anakin so confused, so unsure of himself, in all of the years he had known him.

"I don't know, my friend," Obi Wan said. "But I certainly won't stand for it."  
"Is it my fault?" Anakin asked, and Obi Wan stared at him dumfounded.

"What do you mean, of course not!"

"I mean… do they want me, or want something from me…because of what I've done as a Jedi… did I somehow bring this upon them?" Anakin asked, and Obi Wan could see the pleading in his friend's eyes to be told otherwise.

"No Anakin," Obi Wan reassured him. "This is no one's fault, bad people simply exist. You know that, you've fought your whole life against people like this, and you've always won in the name of justice and peace. And you will win again. I promise."

Anakin's eyes gave a silent thank you to Obi Wan, and Obi Wan could sense Anakin's resolution begin to strengthen again. "Now Anakin, we must go quickly back to the ship. Padme saw the kidnappers leave the planet, but some boy jumped on the ship with a tracking device, or something…" Before he could even finish, Anakin was walking back towards the ship. Obi Wan caught up and put an arm around Anakin's shoulders.

After some time of walking in silence, Anakin turned to Obi Wan with the familiar look of having had one of his 'brilliant' ideas. "Obi Wan," Anakin began, eyeing his former Master, "I've been thinking-"

"Oh dear," Obi Wan laughed. Anakin managed to give Obi Wan a small smile as well a shove in return for that comment.

"I'm serious though," he said, as they trudged through the sand. "I think that this goes way farther than some kind of local ransom kidnapping or something- I think this was planned out…"

"What do you mean?" Obi Wan asked, the two now in the familiar scenario of analyzing the facts of a mission.

"Those shots that were fired on us a couple of days ago," Anakin began, and Obi Wan started to see where he was going. "Remember how I couldn't see the ship anywhere? Well I think that's because the attack was very carefully staged- the ship went into hyperspace right after firing… Obi Wan, I think that they aimed specifically at that part of my ship, knowing that I would have to come here to get the replacement, and then with me and the children away from Coruscant, away from the Temple and the other Jedi, they would have the chance to…" he faded out, unable to discuss the kidnapping.

"That's a very good theory, Anakin," Obi Wan agreed. "I believe you could be right, we certainly have a lot to figure out…"

"You said the boy put a tracking device on their ship?" Anakin asked.

"Yes, and himself too, apparently," Obi Wan responded.

"He certainly is daring," Anakin said. "Where was the ship headed?"

"Who is the boy?" Obi Wan asked, unable to contain his curiosity any longer.

"He was Watto's slave…" Anakin muttered, and he didn't have to say any more for Obi Wan to comprehend the situation- Anakin wanted to help this boy. "Where was the ship headed?" Anakin asked again.

"When I got there it had just left Tatooine, but the course seemed to be set for Kashyyyk…"  
"Why would they go there?"

"I really don't know, my friend," Obi Wan said.

Suddenly, they found themselves at the ship. Padme ran down and threw herself into Anakin's arms. He hugged her tightly, kissing her head, as she cried.

"We will find them angel. We will," he tried to reassure her.

"Anakin, it's my fault, I'm so sorry," she babbled through her tears.

"What? What are you talking about…"

"I've just realized… the bill to regulate trade in Hutt space, they must've…"

"Shhh, shhh," Anakin said, though he and Obi Wan eyed each other, knowing that this was one possible explanation for the problem.  
"It's unlikely though," Obi Wan voiced aloud. "The Hutts would not have acted so audaciously for that one simple political agenda, I highly doubt…"

"Not the Hutts," Padme stuttered, still having trouble expressing herself. "The smugglers, the criminals…"

"I still think it is doubtful," Obi Wan said reassuringly. "This goes deeper than that. Both of you need to stop blaming yourselves."

"But it might have something to do with it," Padme gasped, still crying into Anakin's shoulder.

"It is possible, but not probable," Obi Wan said. "Now let's go find your children."

"It's headed for Kashyyyk," she said, and before she and Obi Wan were even on board Anakin had begun to take off. They sat on the ship, Padme in Anakin's arms and Obi Wan sitting pensively to their side, all of them silently trying to piece together the situation for themselves. It was so incomprehensible that the children were gone, that someone had taken them, and all three could only hope that they would be there in time to help…

**Hi! I realize this was kind of short, and I promise the next chapter will be longer and better, but I had to get what was said in this chapter said, so that I can sort of go on to the next step of the story. Hope you're enjoying it!**

**P.S. Did anyone else's stats for 'hits' get reset and start back at zero a couple days ago? It was really weird.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Ch. 12**

Anakin started his approach into Kashyyyk, the tracking light on their map blinking in a remote location on the planet, far from any large Wookiee civilization.

"How far away should we land, for safety?" Anakin asked Obi Wan.

"Make sure that your approach is out of their line of sight," Obi Wan advised. "Then fly low, through the trees, to get closer. Make sure we are hidden- touch down in a densely forested area, the closest you can get."  
Anakin nodded and began his descent onto the planet, quickly descending far from the kidnappers' ship then cruising just above the surface of the planet until he found an outcropping of trees.

"We're about a mile from them," Obi Wan noted. "This is perfect," he said as Anakin landed the ship.

"So um," Anakin began, voicing the opinion of all three of them. "What do we do now?"

"Padme, you stay and-" Obi Wan began, but was cut off.

"No," Padme responded firmly. "I'm coming with you."

Obi Wan eyed Anakin.

'I agree that it isn't the best idea for her to be with us,' Anakin told him through the Force. 'But I don't want to leave her here alone, Master.'

'All right,' Obi Wan consented. 'And you don't have to call me Master anymore, I thought you learned that years ago.'

'Habit,' Anakin smiled at him.

"Well?" Padme grumbled, aggravated that they were talking through the Force.

"Sorry," Anakin apologized, giving her a hug. "You can come, but just be careful and quiet."

"Anakin, I think I can handle it," she said sarcastically.

"She has been in a lot of similar situations," Obi Wan commented. "She'll be fine."

"You were the one who didn't want to bring her!" Anakin said, annoyed that somehow Obi Wan was making him sound like the bad guy. "I wanted her to come." He wrapped his arms around Padme and kissed the top of her head as she crossed her arms frustratedly. Obi Wan rolled his eyes.

"We'd better get going," he said, and they all quietly disembarked.

The three stealthily moved through the trees, trying to get as close as possible to the other ship. Finally, Obi Wan held up his hand and they paused behind a tree about fifty feet from the other ship. The activity in front of the ship was in a frenzy. The guards huddled together, looking nervous and even scared, talking in hushed voices. The cloaked figures, who obviously were not just hired for pay like the guards and had more investment in the situation, ran frantically around, yelling to each other, blasters held high.

"We must get them back before The Master finds out," yelled one, rounding up several others and throwing blasters.

"How did they get away?" Yelled another, following him.

"They had help," answered the first. "But I don't know."

Padme and Anakin stared at each other, hope back in their eyes. The twins had escaped- the news was wonderful to hear. They hugged each other, and turned to Obi Wan, waiting for his suggestion of what to do next.

"Oh, I'm supposed to have the plan?" He asked, amused. They nodded.

"You're so wise, Obi Wan. Please give us your advice," Anakin said sarcastically.

"I see, now that the situation is looking up, you're all sarcasm and taunting again, is that it Anakin?"

"No, not at all, what would make you say that?" Anakin asked innocently.

"Don't give me the puppy dog eyes Anakin. They stopped working on me years ago."

"Not on me," Padme chimed in, kissing Anakin on the cheek. Obi Wan turned away, pretending to be disgusted by them and laughed. "Now, what are we going to do Obi Wan?" Padme asked.

"Well, I would suggest finding your children."

"They boy must have helped them," Anakin said, as Padme and Obi Wan looked at him as if this was obvious. "I wonder what made him change his mind about getting involved so quickly?"

"Well I suppose we will soon find out," Obi Wan said. "Let's see if we can't decipher in which way the children ran." They turned back to the figures, now organized to go out in search of the children.

"This way," One cloaked figure said, and they began to run in disarray in that direction.

"Well that was easy enough," Obi Wan said, and he turned to follow. Anakin stayed put. "What are you waiting for Anakin?"

"Age before beauty, Master," Anakin laughed, and Obi Wan rolled his eyes.

"Honestly," Obi Wan said, shaking his head, and they began to run parallel to the cloaked figures, hidden by the trees.

"We're lucky they chose to land in the forest," Anakin commented as they ran, his breathing growing heavier. Obi Wan nodded, and they continued. Suddenly, Anakin stopped short, and Padme bumped into him and fell backwards.

"Oh Force, Padme are you all right?" Anakin asked hurriedly, rushing to her side to help her up.

"Of course, Anakin," She answered, giving him a weird look. But then she noticed Anakin's hand on her stomach. "Oh I see, you're actually concerned about your own future offspring, not your wife," she laughed, and Anakin shook his head.

"Both of you, love," he told her tenderly.

"Anakin, stumbling down onto a pile of leaves cannot hurt the baby, don't worry. Honestly you are so protective." She smiled and gave him a kiss.

"You're pregnant again?" Obi Wan asked, obviously offended that he had not been told sooner.

"Um, yes…" Padme answered.

"Thanks for telling me, Anakin," Obi Wan said, still feigning anger.

"Well we just found out, ok? And don't go getting angry, at least I do tell you everything, you're the one with all the secrets," he said indignantly. Obi Wan shrugged his shoulders, Anakin obviously annoyed that he was still being kept in the dark about Obi Wan's social life.

"Why did you stop Anakin?" Padme asked, grabbing his hand and intertwining her fingers with his.

"Oh," Anakin said. "Because they're that way." He pointed in a direction perpendicular to that in which they had been running.

"How do you know?"

"Do you not sense it Obi Wan?" Anakin asked, surprised.

"Now that you call it to my attention, yes, but I am not yet familiar enough with their Force signals to have noticed them as strongly as you did," he answered, and they turned and began to hurry in the direction in which Anakin had pointed.

"You should be more familiar with Luke's, you know," Anakin teased his former Master. "He is your Padawan."

"He's been my Padawan for one day," Obi Wan said rolling his eyes. "Trust me Anakin, if he's anything like you, before I even want to I'll be able to feel if he so much as gets his hair pulled even when I'm seven systems away."

"Ok, that was a fistful of hair being pulled out, _and_ it was on Hoth, and you know that the cold makes things hurt way more than they normally would," Anakin pouted.

"Tell me _that_ story later," Padme said, turning toward Anakin interestedly and teasing him.

"He screamed like a little girl," Obi Wan said, and Padme laughed.

"You weren't even there!" Anakin yelled frustratedly.

"Voice down Anakin, you don't want anyone to hear us. And I know how you react to things like that. You know I'm right."

Anakin frowned and they continued to walk towards the children. Anakin pretended to be angry, but he secretly enjoyed these bouts of mutual taunting with Obi Wan. He loved the fact that they had become such close friends over the years that they always knew just how to make fun of each other, and just what to expect as a reaction. The best part about it was that both knew it was always all in fun, and understood their deep compassion for each other if something were to go terribly wrong, as it had when the twins went missing. But now that the twins had escaped, they could joke like this again, and Anakin always enjoyed it. He was thinking about this, as well as about Padme and how ready he was to just get home and continue their happy life together with their children, when suddenly he felt the twin's were in danger.

"Something's wrong!" Anakin and Obi Wan exclaimed at the same time, running forward. Obi Wan stopped them short, suddenly, holding out his arm. They saw from behind a tree a clearing that ended in a steep cliff. Several cloaked figures stood at the edge of the cliff, blasters pointed downwards.

"Give them back!" One of them yelled, raising his blaster to shoot.

"No," they heard a small voice say determinedly. "Please, they're just children, don't hurt us… remember…"

"Traitor!" Yelled a cloaked figure.

Suddenly, Obi Wan and Anakin burst onto the scene, light sabers ignited, knowing that there was no more time to observe. They slashed easily through six or seven of the figures, and the remaining few stumbled off, cowering in the bushes. Anakin rushed to the side of the cliff, and the sight that met their eyes was very peculiar.

A Wookiee held with one paw onto the edge of the cliff, holding the boy's hand in his other paw. Luke clung to the Wookiee's back, and the boy held Leia with his free arm, hugging her to his chest. The Wookiee growled.

"He wants you to take Luke," the boy said. "Then he can pull us up." They did so, and sure enough the Wookiee was able to pull them safely onto the ground.

"You speak Wookiee?" Padme asked.

"I'll explain later," the boy said uncomfortably, and Padme knew this wasn't the time to question him.

"Thank you," Anakin said to the Wookiee, then the boy. He and Padme embraced their children, tears of joy streaming down Padme's face.

"Mommy!" Leia giggled, hugging her. Anakin lifted Luke in the air, squeezing him tightly to his chest. Anakin then picked up Leia, holding both twins tightly, and Padme stood up and clasped Luke's tiny hand.

"Hi Master," Luke said, waving at Obi Wan. Anakin walked over and handed Luke to Obi Wan, who was caught off guard. He took the boy in his arms somewhat awkwardly and smiled at him.

"Hello, Luke," he said warmly, now more comfortable with the situation.

"When you train me am I going to be like daddy?" Luke asked.

"Oh dear," was all Obi Wan said, the thought obviously being too much for him at the time. Anakin laughed.

"You'll be even better Luke," Anakin smiled at his son, and Luke looked up at him brightly. "I'll teach you how to really get on Master Obi Wan's nerves, ok?"

"Ok Daddy!" Luke giggled excitedly. Obi Wan looked like he might cry.

"Just kidding Master," Anakin said, putting his hand on Obi Wan's back. "Sort of."

Padme clung to Leia and stared into Luke's bright blue eyes. "I missed you so much," she said, crying. "How did you…how?" She asked the boy, and he just smiled. "And thank you, too," She said to the Wookiee, and he growled.

"Why…Why did they call you a traitor?" Anakin asked the boy, unable to hold his curiosity any longer.

"It's such a long story," the boy said, shifting around nervously and again very uncomfortable. "We had better get out of here, but I'll tell you everything, I promise… This Wookiee is a friend, he wants to help. I know him from, um… a long time ago." He looked down at the ground, and Obi Wan and Anakin eyed each other suspiciously. However, they decided to let it rest for now and they turned to walk back towards the ship.

"Anyway," the boy continued. "Luckily, he was hunting nearby and heard the struggle, otherwise… anyway, he will help us back safely, he knows the land."

Obi wan nodded and walked ahead, holding Luke's hand, and Padme and Anakin followed, each holding one of Leia's hands and swinging her between them. They walked into the trees.

"Watch out!" They heard suddenly, and turned around with lightning reflexes to see the boy jump on the Wookiee, knocking him to the ground so that a laser blast just missed the two of them. The boy got up quickly and turned his blaster to the side, shooting ahead of him. Anakin and Obi Wan rushed back out, Padme holding the twins with her, safely hidden in the trees.

Tons of cloaked figures and guards suddenly had discovered them, and the fight quickly escalated into a small battle. However, the two Jedi Masters were able to kill many of the basically unskilled figures before them, and the boy was quite a good shot for his age. The Wookiee, unarmed, used his sheer strength to kill anyone who approached the boy. Suddenly, Padme threw him her blaster and he defended the boy even more skillfully.

"Why are you helping me?" The boy asked. "Protect them," he nodded towards the twins. The Wookiee growled. "But you don't owe me anything. You already saved my life too, on the cliff." The Wookiee growled again. "Oh, right...well, ok." The boy smiled.

"Go back," Anakin yelled. "Obi Wan and I can handle this."

"No, I am not leaving you," Padme said. "If you can handle it, then I will be fine."

Suddenly, all of the cloaked figures stopped fighting, and sunk to their knees. Anakin and Obi Wan stood awkwardly, light sabers hanging ignited at their sides, unwilling to kill anyone in so defenseless a position.

"Oh no," the boy yelled. "Get out of here, now!"

"What is it?" Obi Wan asked nervously.

"The Master," the boy said quietly, staring ahead. "Please, run away now. I honestly don't know what he wants from you or your children, I really don't, but this man … If he finds them again, they won't escape this time, please…"

"Padme, hide," Anakin yelled.

"It won't help," the boy said. "He's like you, he's…" Suddenly, the boy's eyes were filled with tears. "Please just go. Please."

"Wait a minute," Anakin said. "He's like us, you mean that-"

Before he could finish his thought, a red blade was at his throat.

"Anakin Skywalker," said a trembling, evil voice. "I've been waiting for you."


	13. Chapter 13

**Ch. 13**

Obi Wan saw Anakin's hand clench around his light saber and felt his friend's thoughts of hatred escalate quickly. Obi Wan, too, whished they could just fight and end it all right then, but it was no use. Even Anakin Skywalker had no chance of even engaging the Sith in combat, he would be killed instantly. The Sith stood above Anakin, who was kneeling, his light saber at Anakin's throat. One move, and Anakin would be killed. Suddenly, Obi Wan saw Anakin begin to bring his hand up in attempt to knock the Sith's blade away.

"Anakin, don't try it! He has the higher ground!" Obi Wan yelled. Though no physical change was evident in Anakin, because he couldn't move without being pierced by the red blade in front of him, Obi Wan could sense his former Padawan reassessing the situation. Reluctantly, slowly, spitefully, Anakin dropped his light saber on the grass below him.

"Your patience is admirable, Anakin," came the creepy voice from under the hood. "Much more so then the last time we met. Now tell me, where are the children?"

Padme was still hiding with Luke and Leia behind the trees, her hands over their mouths so that they could not make a sound. However, she was finding it harder to keep herself quiet. Seeing her husband so close to being killed was almost too much to handle. Tears streamed silently down her face, and her sole thought was that of a longing to be home, cuddled on the couch with Anakin's arms around her, Luke and Leia giggling together on the floor as they played. She longed to be with him, to suffer with him, but she knew that she could not run to him, for her children's sake.

"Safe from you," Anakin spat at the blade in front of him, not even giving the Sith enough respect to look into his eyes.

"You will not get them back," Obi Wan seconded, supporting Anakin. "Do what you must with us, but the children are safe from you."

"It doesn't matter," said the Sith, refusing to be outdone. "I don't really care about them anyway, don't you see? It's you I want, as it always has been."  
Anakin now stared up into his eyes, looking outwardly even more confused then ever and yet feeling his instincts lead him even closer to the truth.

"Take of your hood," Anakin demanded, the situation all to familiar for him.

"All in good time," replied the Sith. Suddenly, he turned sharply and ordered his followers to search the area for the twins, as well as to bring the boy, the Wookiee, an the two Jedi back to their base. He began to walk away briskly, but stopped when he reached the boy.

"It's a shame," he said, quietly but menacingly. "You could have been on the right side of it all. Now, I'll probably have to kill you… I am sorry." He cackled, and stalked off accompanied by several guards.

"I hate you! I am on the right side!" The boy yelled after him. "I am…" he said more quietly, crying to himself.

Both Anakin and Obi Wan tried to send Force signals to Padme to sneak away slowly, to hide herself and the twins, but they had to be very cautious in case the Sith was anywhere nearby- he probably had the ability to hear Force messages even if they weren't directed to him.

It was too late. Several of the cloaked figures emerged from the trees with Padme and the twins at gunpoint. Padme's cheeks were streaked with tears, though she had stopped crying, and Luke and Leia stood amazingly resolute and determined, only their eyes betraying their fear.

"It _will_be ok," Anakin tried to reassure his family. "I promise you."

The figures marched away with the prisoners, around the woods this time. They wound up at some sort of base, one which had obviously been well established for some time. They threw all of them into a cell together, first making sure to take any weapons or possessions that any of them held. Several guards remained outside, but the group was alone in the cell.

"What now?" Anakin asked Obi Wan.

"Our first matter of business is to get your family and this boy and Wookiee to safety," Obi Wan replied. "But, I'm afraid Anakin that we must come back. We will alert the council and then we must deal with this Sith. The fact that a Sith remains in the galaxy is extremely disturbing, we can't allow this situation to not be dealt with."

"Agreed," Anakin stated firmly but sadly.

"No, Ani," Padme pleaded. "Please, let someone else…"

"There's nothing to worry about, love," Anakin assured her. "We can handle it."  
"But last time you-" Padme began, referring to when Anakin had been knocked unconscious by Sith lightning when he had faced Palpatine. (A.N. If you haven't read No Boundaries, this would be confusing, but it doesn't really matter.)

"Padme, he jumped in front of that to save me," Obi Wan reminded her, interrupting. "Anakin helped in defeating Sidious."  
"But Yoda was with him, and Mace, and you," Padme argued.

"I wasn't much help," Obi Wan laughed regretfully. "I was unconscious for most of the battle. Anakin did much of it himself."

"We can handle this Padme, and it is our duty," Anakin told her. "But I will get all of you to safety first." He pulled her close to him, as they sat together on the ground, and kissed her. He put a hand on her belly, trying to include the unborn member of the family in his affections. He smiled at Padme reassuringly, though she only could gaze at him worriedly. He gave her another kiss, unable to bear the look of sadness on her face.

"Don't," mumbled Leia, and despite themselves, everyone laughed. Leia remained headstrong and true to her nature, even in this situation. Luke nodded to Leia, scrunching up his nose, and she giggled.

Padme pulled Leia and Luke close to her, trying to live in the moment and be thankful that she was simply with her children and husband, and all of them were alive. Anakin put his arms around all of them, and buried his head in Padme's shoulder. 'Thank the Force you're safe,' Anakin thought. Without his family, he would feel so lost, so alone… 'Well, except for Obi Wan, of course,' he remembered with a small smile, looking towards his former master. He suddenly noticed that Obi Wan was in deep conversation with the boy, and they all turned to tune into the conversation, intrigued as to how the boy would explain his role in all of this.

"When I was little," the boy was saying, "I was taken from my home planet of Corellia. I think I had parents there, I'm not sure. Maybe they killed them, but who cares. Obviously no one cared about me, cuz I was always alone. Anyways I was maybe four or five when they found me, and took me away."

"Excuse me, but who are they?" Padme asked politely.

"These, these people! These creatures here, I don't even know. Except not the ones now, these ones were like me…it was older ones, meaner ones…"

"What do you mean?"  
"We were being trained to follow… him," the boy stated, and that was all he had to say.

"But a Sith would have taken Force sensitive children to train, I don't understand what he wanted you for," Anakin protested.

"He took us from all over the galaxy," the boy continued, almost ignoring Anakin. "And he brought us here, maybe other more remote planets too. It was as if he was trying to make it like a summer camp or something. There were a few of us from every system, I guess he wanted kids of all the species, who spoke all the languages, understood all the cultures…he told us we would bring peace to the galaxy, we would run the greatest army ever to keep the peace… anyway we all came here, and lived at these camp like places, all of us around the same age. He trained us like we were soldiers or something, even at such a young age. That's where I learned to speak Wookiee, because I was brought here… and where I met him," He said, nudging a shoulder towards the Wookiee, who growled kindly. "Anyway, we kids were all orphans, you know; so don't ask me how he found us or where we came from. All I know is, this guy is and was evil. He would torture us, threaten us with the light saber if we ever questioned him, do Force tricks to make us think what he wanted us to, or to shut us up…horrible things…"

"And that's why you don't like Jedi," Obi Wan muttered pensively.

"It's why I don't trust the Force, yes," the boy answered defiantly.

"We aren't all like that," Obi Wan said. "He's a Sith, we are different…"

"Well I'm on your side now, ain't I?" The boy shot back defensively. "Anyway, one day, like four or five years ago, he told us it was time, that what we'd been training for was coming. He said he had to go to Coruscant, to get the army ready, then we were gonna go all over the place to lead it. He said he was getting a new apprentice, cuz the old one had just been killed, and that we would all be even more powerful and be able to bring more peace to the galaxy… but I didn't stick around for the rest. I ran…I didn't like this guy and I didn't want to help him and I certainly didn't want to be like the creepy cloaked guys that followed him around, and we were being trained to replace them…so I ran. I snuck off at the spaceport when we were being sent away, and stowed away on a ship and ended up on Tatooine. Jabba found me, and he was impressed I had managed to get there undetected, so he hired me to smuggle for him, taught me how to understand that language and all… Anyway one day I lose a big shipment right, so he sells me! Apparently Watto needed a kid who could fix stuff, and who could speak Huttese, which I could because of Jabba, not sure I'm really thankful for that or not…anyway he needed me, having lost his last kid that was worth anything over ten years before or something. So anyway, I didn't have anything to do with hurting your children or anything like that, ok? I just started to get suspicious then I noticed we were goin' to Kashyyyk, and that's why I wanted to help. Because I know what it's like… and those guys that called me a traitor are guys I was here with, they still think they're doin' right but I know they ain't. And that's it, ok?"

"So those that we killed, they're just… just…" Obi wan couldn't finish his sentence.

"Kids, yep. But I was one of the youngest, and don't worry because you _should_ kill them, they've pledged themselves to him, they're just as bad as him if you ask me."  
"But they've been lied to, manipulated with the Force… we, we could help them!" Obi Wan protested.

"If you think it's possible…" the boy shrugged.

"So are you saying," Anakin said quietly, breaking out of a trance. "That this man is Palpatine?" Suddenly, Padme and Obi Wan stared at him.

"I dunno who Palpatine is, wasn't he once Chancellor?" asked the boy.

"He was also a Sith Lord, Darth Sidious. We defeated him, but I thought…" Obi wan drifted off.

"Lord Sidious was Chancellor Palpatine!" The boy exclaimed incredulously. "I knew the universe was a mess, but not this bad. Force! Yep, that's him."

"How, how did he… how…?" Anakin stuttered, seething in anger.

"Calm down Anakin," Obi Wan warned. "I thought he was killed too, but remember, neither you nor I were in any condition to actually see his trial, we were both in the hospital all week. Neither of us ever saw him after the battle…"

"Why would they lie to us," Anakin shouted, getting angry. Luke and Leia cowered in the corner, and Padme held them close to her, though for once she was feeling the same intensity of anger and betrayal that he was.

"Why would he bring innocent kids, from all over the galaxy…it doesn't make sense," Anakin said finally, calming down simply because he refused to believe it.

"Actually Anakin, it does," Obi Wan counseled him. "Remember, there can only be two Sith… but he needed followers who weren't clones, ones who could actually lead armies and make decisions for themselves… so he took children, whom he could brainwash from an early age, in whom he could instill these twisted ideas. And no one would ever know, because they were orphans…"

"It's sick, it's twisted…" Padme protested.

"But it's true," stated the boy, staring at her intently.

"I can't believe he's still alive," Padme said softly, and she hugged Luke and Leia to her more tightly.

Suddenly, a bunch of the cloaked figures burst in and grabbed the boy and the Wookiee, pointing guns to their heads and pulling them out.

"No!" Anakin yelled, trying to hold them back. The Wookiee fought with all his might to protect the boy, but it was no use. They were extremely outnumbered.

"It's no use," the boy said, trying to calm the Wookiee and Obi Wan pulled Anakin's arm back.

"Don't get your children killed for this, Anakin," Obi Wan counseled. "We _will_ help him."  
"Come on, _buddy,_" Said one of the cloaked figures meanly to the boy's face.

"Don't worry about me," the boy said. "Just try to get out of here, before he comes…"  
"We _will_ save you," Anakin yelled to him, cursing to himself as the door to the cell was slammed again.

"The poor thing," Padme whimpered. "We never even learned his name…"

"Han," Leia responded enthusiastically. "Han Solo." Leia stared out the door after him, smiling after her newfound friend.


	14. Chapter 14

**Ch. 14**

It had been hours since the Sith's followers had taken Han; Padme, Anakin, Luke, Leia, and Obi Wan sat in a row against the wall, staring at the opposite wall in front of them. They had talked, the children had run around, they had tried to make the best of the situation, but everyone (the twins included) had found that the moment asked more for quiet retrospection than for failed attempts to rationalize.

Padme hugged her knees and stared at the scar over Anakin's eye, suddenly feeling a deep respect for him and Obi Wan. If this was the sort of situation they had to deal with routinely, even if it was one of the extremes, she had no idea how they handled it. She had always wondered why Anakin would sometimes be so angry or so frustrated, especially back when she had first married him. But suddenly, she understood. That was during the Clone Wars- the situations had been almost this intense daily. She had so many emotions pent up inside her in the current moment that had she been Force sensitive she herself might have been inclined to choke someone to death out of sheer frustration. She knew now why Obi Wan constantly warned Anakin, and himself, to contain their emotions, to rationalize the situation, to be calm… she had been in a lot of tight places in her life, and a lot of difficult and highly dangerous situations, but this was the longest and the most intense of any danger she had ever faced. Even when she had been under a threat of assassination, she had at least been at home and trying to go about her job and her daily responsibilities. But, she realized now, these sorts of problems _were_ the Jedis' daily responsibilities, and she suddenly had a newfound respect for her husband and her friend. She kept staring at Anakin's scar- he had never told her how exactly he got it, but now she knew why- because he knew that she shouldn't know, she didn't want to know- he always said that his time with her was time to be happy, and forget his work, and now she understood why. She had always liked the scar, thinking it made him look wiser and handsomer, but now she really respected it- well, him, she thought to herself, smiling at Anakin. She leaned on to his shoulder and he absentmindedly put his arm around her.

Obi Wan sat with his chin resting on the fingers of his right hand, as he distractedly drew circles in the dirt floor of their prison with his left. He had tried to meditate, but he hadn't been able to, his mind was far too cluttered and refused to clear. So he sat thinking about the situation, trying to figure out how to best escape with all of their party alive and well, Han and the Wookie included. He felt deep empathy for the family next to him, understanding that the pain he was feeling must be magnified tenfold in all of them. He admired Anakin for using incredible restraint and sagacity in the moment, simply trying to comfort everyone else and quickly containing the anger that sprang to him. Obi Wan was currently thinking about how much Anakin had matured since they'd last dealt with such a difficult situation, and this fact boosted his confidence that they would be all right. Five years ago, Obi Wan knew Anakin would have jumped to attack the Sith, as he had in the cave on Geonosis, and that would have been the end…but now Anakin was a father and a husband, and a loyal Jedi Master, and something in him had changed that led him to deal well with the situation- he was now thinking about those around him and the consequences of his actions, and for the first time Obi Wan really saw him as a Jedi Master.

Anakin studied a crack in the roof very intently, having lost all train of thought over the past few hours, and could think only about how it reminded him of Master Yoda's head. His attempts at forming a plan of escape had completely abandoned him, as had any thoughts about the situation. If he thought about the events of the past day, he only got angry, and he was trying very hard to be calm and peaceful. Meditation was never an option for him in such a stressful time, though he knew it should be, and so after he had counted the gray hairs in Obi Wan's beard he had taken to studying the ceiling. The crack above Obi Wan reminded him of Padme's hair when it was curly, which he loved, and the crack to the left of Leia's outstretched hand looked like his light saber. The Yoda crack was above Luke's feet, where… wait, why were Luke's feet up in the air? He suddenly focused his attention on his son, who was tottering around on his hands, sticking his feet straight up in the air. Leia's hand stretched towards Luke and her eyes were closed. Had Obi Wan's eyes been open he might have questioned what in the name of the Force the Skywalker twins were doing, but Anakin and Padme hardly gave it a second glance, being used to such random displays in their household many times daily.

Luke and Leia, having grown extremely bored with the adults' silence, had been carrying on an intense bout of gambling through Force talking to one another. Luke had bragged about his ability to walk on his hands, and Leia, knowing that he wasn't the most coordinated boy in the world, had bet him seven hundred credits that she could push him over without even touching him. Little did Luke seem to realize, Leia didn't have seven hundred credits to give him anyway, so she would win no matter what. What Leia failed to see was that Luke did not have seven hundred credits either, and thus the bet was moot. However, Luke had managed to remain on his hands for over a minute, at least a minute in Leia's own particular timetable, and she now had her hand outstretched trying to push him over without touching him. Realizing it simply wasn't going to work unless she used the Force, she scrunched up her face and closed her eyes, trying to look like her daddy when he moved big things with the Force. Luke sniggered to himself, knowing that he was winning the bet, though he suddenly felt his legs swaying and knew he would soon fall over. When he fell into his sister's lap, neither could decide whether it had been her Force push or his own lack of balance that had caused it, and thus reverted to writing their names in the dirt with their fingers. Throughout this entire exchange, neither child made a sound, and the grown ups hardly even realized what was going on.

Suddenly, thunderous stomping just outside the door interrupted their thoughts and all of them turned their heads quickly to stare at the door. Anakin pulled his children to him and stood in front of them and Padme, so that anyone who wanted to hurt them would have to go through him first. Sidious burst into the room, followed by twenty of his followers, his light saber ignited in front of him.

"You're coming with us," he said, as his followers pulled Anakin and Obi Wan towards them, leaving Padme and the children.

"NO!" Anakin screamed, refusing to take his hand from Padme's and gazing longingly into his children's eyes. "No, no…" They ripped his hand from Padme's and pulled he and Obi Wan away as they struggled violently.

"Anakin," Padme cried, tears now falling from her eyes. "What's happening?"

"I'll save you, Padme," Anakin yelled. "I'll save you, I'll…"

"Why are we being separated?" Obi Wan demanded, straining with all his strength as a whole group of Sidious' followers surrounded him. "What are you going to do with us, with them?"  
"Come on," growled Sidious, and he brought his light saber up to the backs of Obi Wan and Anakin so that they could not struggle anymore.

Tears fell down Anakin's face, as he looked at Padme and his children, so alone in the room. He and Padme shared a long and desperate gaze, and the twins sat watching their father be taken from them, crying. Suddenly, the door was slammed shut, cutting off Anakin's view of his family.

'It will be all right, Anakin,' Obi Wan assured him through the Force. 'This way, we will be able to escape…without them, it's easier, you know that, and then we can save them from the outside, which will prove more successful. I promise you, my friend. You will not lose them.'

Anakin just stared at Obi Wan, grateful for his reassurance and also his presence there, helping his family, but he still felt devastated. At least before they were all prisoners together, at least he was with his family and knew they were all right. Now, he wasn't sure what Sidious planned to do with them… Obi Wan was right, they had to escape, and they had to do it fast. Sidious himself shoved Anakin and Obi Wan into another room, darker and smaller than the first.

"We will be back for you," Sidious warned them, as he locked the door. "Soon."


	15. Chapter 15

**Ch. 15**

Obi Wan watched Anakin as he sat staring blankly at the wall, an expression of utter despair etched on the young Jedi's face. He wished he could help him, in some way, any way, but knew that nothing he could say or do would comfort Anakin. He felt such deep empathy for his friend, and extreme fear for the family with whom he was so close- but he knew that Anakin's pain was far worse. He now understood, though he wasn't sure that Anakin realized it yet, that Sidious was using Anakin's family to get at Anakin himself- he would take this opportunity, in which Anakin felt that he had lost everything, to try to turn him. He would offer Anakin the chance to save his family, and Obi Wan worried that Anakin would see no choice but to take it. He knew that the only option was to escape from their prison quickly so that they could save everyone from Sidioius' grasp before Anakin had enough time to lose all hope. He could feel Anakin's grief resonating through the Force, and could hear his former Padawan wondering if the children would be killed. He approached him now and put an arm on his shoulder.

"He will not kill them, Anakin," Obi Wan said comfortingly. As he said those words, all of Anakin's feelings suddenly disappeared from Obi Wan's detection, and Anakin turned away and stared at the wall. Obi Wan no longer had any idea what Anakin was thinking- Anakin was blocking him. He tried not to be hurt, understanding how difficult this time was for Anakin. "Don't block me out, Anakin. Please, let me understand. I want to help you, to comfort you, after all of this time you must know that I-"

"Nothing can comfort me now, in a situation like this" Anakin answered despairingly. "You don't want to know what I'm feeling."

"Anakin, yes, I do…"

"No, it would only worry you," Anakin said stubbornly. "It would scare you, Obi Wan. I don't want you to know."  
"Anakin I can't let you keep these feelings contained, it will only make it worse. You have to work through this so that we can help your family."  
"How can we help them?" Anakin shouted suddenly. "We're impossibly outnumbered."  
"Anakin, you and I have been in situations much worse than this before, we-"

"Yes, but my wife and children haven't!" Anakin screamed, tears in his eyes.

"Anakin, stop it. Stop blocking me. I want to help you-"

"Fine!" Anakin yelled, and suddenly a flood of emotion filled Obi Wan's senses, and Anakin was right- it did scare him. There was so much pain, so much anger, that Obi Wan knew that so far Sidious' plan was working. Obi Wan felt the same feelings in Anakin that he had felt so many years ago during the Clone Wars, except now, they were multiplied. But amidst that anger was a terrible sadness, and a deep, deep love for his family. Also, Anakin's bright Force presence with which Obi Wan had become so familiar was still there- still holding out hope. So Obi Wan clung to the feelings of love and hope, desperately, trying to strengthen them and trying to reassure his friend that they would be all right. Anakin saw the look of shock on Obi Wan's face.

"I told you you wouldn't want to know," he said solemnly.

"But I do Anakin- I can help you," Obi Wan stated firmly. "Don't give in to these feelings, we will get through this, with your family and our little friends in tact. I promise you."

"How will we do that?" Anakin said pessimistically. "How-" Suddenly, Anakin sunk to the ground, unable even to keep himself standing. He sat against the wall, now letting the tears fall. He turned away, not wanting to let Obi Wan see his weakness, but Obi Wan simply sat next to him and put his arm reassuringly around his shoulder.

"I know you're upset Anakin," Obi Wan said. "I know this is hard, it's ok to be scared. You don't have to be strong all the time…"

"Yes I do," Anakin said stubbornly. "I have to be, or how will they be?"

Obi Wan knew he was talking about Padme and the children- Anakin had always put such a burden on himself to not worry them about anything, to make sure that he always was reassuring and strong for them, so that they didn't have to be scared, or worried, or sad. It worried Obi Wan, and Padme as well, and the two discussed it occasionally, knowing that it wasn't good for Anakin to bottle up his emotions.

"But Anakin," Obi Wan said gently, "they aren't here." Anakin stared at Obi Wan, but suddenly, just when he thought he might let himself feel weak and vulnerable, just for a moment, he no longer needed to. He suddenly felt reassured, and strong, and ready to save his family, go on with their lives, and forget the whole thing.

"Well," he said, turning to Obi Wan with a hint of a smile on his face. "How do you suggest we escape?"

"Now there's the Anakin I trained," Obi Wan said, smiling at him. "Personally, I think we should just break out the back, and hope we don't get detected. We just need to get out of here well before Sidious comes back- so that we have time to rescue everyone. So let's get out of here now. We've broken out of plenty of places far more secure than this, you know that Anakin."

"Yes, but with one important thing that we now lack- light sabers," Anakin reminded him.

"Well this is where we break the code a little bit and use the Force a little more than we are supposed to," Obi Wan answered, his eyes twinkling.

"Master, I'm shocked!" Anakin teased him. "Break the code- you?"

"You're a fine one to talk Anakin," Obi Wan laughed. "Look what you've done to it."  
"So how do you intend to use the Force to escape?" Anakin asked him.

"For once, Anakin, let yourself use it in the ways you've always wanted to in battle. Manipulate your surroundings and see if you can't get us out of this room."

"Obi Wan, now is not the time for a new lesson," Anakin said frustratedly. "Just tell me what to do, and for Force sake, help me!"

"What would you say these walls are made of, Anakin? Dirt?" Obi Wan said casually.

Anakin nodded. "Packed tightly too… miserable place. I don't know how we can get out of here, Force pulling pieces of floor and ceiling is one thing, but the ground itself?"

Obi Wan just smiled. He lifted his hand, and the pieces of dirt began to rearrange themselves so that there was a hole in the wall and up to the ground's surface just big enough for Obi Wan and Anakin to push themselves through to the top. Anakin stared in shock at Obi Wan.

"How did you do that?" He asked, incredulously. He suddenly realized that Obi Wan was a lot more powerful than he had realized. He was truly impressed, and in awe of his former Master. He had never seen him use the Force so powerfully and yet peacefully before. Anakin suddenly realized that he still had a lot to learn- obviously there were things about the Force that even he hadn't even begun to learn yet.

"Even as a Master, Anakin," Obi Wan told him, "There is much to learn." (A.N. totally making this stuff up…) Anakin kept staring at him, and Obi Wan just laughed. "Surprised to find something you can't do that I can, Anakin?"

"No, no, I just-"

"I'm just teasing you, it's something you will learn."

"I've been on the Council for four years," Anakin began. "Why don't I know?"

"Learn to mediate properly," was all Obi Wan said, before he wedged himself through the hole he had created and was soon standing in freedom. Anakin followed soon after, and with a flick of Obi Wan's hand the ground closed behind them.

"Let them figure that one out," Obi Wan laughed. "It will be a long time before they can even figure out which way we went. They'll never know how we escaped. We'll be out of here with everyone before they even know that we're gone."

"Have I ever told you how incredible I think you are?" Anakin said, still in shock.

"Don't tell Padme you said that," Obi Wan teased, rolling his eyes, before heading straight into the woods behind them. "Hide here, just to be safe. Do you know where the cell holding Padme and the children is located?"

"Well I think that we went north when they took us…"

"Really?"

"No, I made that up. I have no idea," Anakin admitted, suddenly frustrated again.

"Search for them with the Force Anakin," Obi Wan instructed, as if this were obvious. "Call to them."

"You could do it too…"

"But you know them far better than I do," Obi Wan told him. "But be careful, we don't want Sidious to sense this."

"They're over here," Anakin said suddenly, walking off to the right with Obi Wan following him closely. Soon enough, from the little ridge of woods where they stood, they saw several small huts like the one in which they had been kept with Anakin's family.

"Ah!" Anakin screamed suddenly, clapping his own hand over his mouth. Obi Wan rushed to him and put his hand on Anakin's shoulder.

"What is it?"  
Anakin just pointed, and Obi Wan followed the direction of his finger and saw Leia sitting down with guards all around her. She looked very small and vulnerable, all alone in the open stretch of land, with the black-cloaked guards surrounding her. Obi Wan looked at Anakin and saw tears in his eyes.

"Anakin, keep yourself together- we can handle this crowd. This might actually be better, we can save them each individually, if they're all separated."

Anakin turned to him, trying to accept this explanation. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. "What should I do?"

"Talk to her, through the Force. Tell her we're here and tell her what to do…and see if she can tell you what happened, where the others are…"  
"She will be surprised- I've never spoken with her through the Force before…but she and Luke talk to each other, so hopefully she won't react too strongly…"

"She and Luke can already talk through the Force?"  
"Yes, I was going to tell you- It's very impressive," Anakin said proudly.

"Wow, that's… oh dear, am I going to have trouble with him," Obi Wan thought out loud, and Anakin smiled. "Just warn her right away not to react. To pretend she doesn't hear you, and to respond only through the Force."

"All right," Anakin said, taking a deep breath. 'Leia, angel, it's daddy, can you-'

He saw Leia's head turn around quickly, and, much to his and Obi Wan's surprise, she looked directly at them with a Force intuition far beyond her years.


	16. Chapter 16

**Ch. 16**

Leia suddenly heard her daddy's voice in her head. It was like the way Luke talked to her, but she had never heard her daddy do it before- she was impressed to know that he could do it too. She turned quickly, and saw him standing up in the forest with Obi Wan.

'Daddy?' She answered through the Force. Suddenly, she realized that Force communication was for secrets, and she thought that maybe she shouldn't be looking at him. She whipped her head back around, and stared straight in front of her.

One of the guards saw this, and rushed to her.

"What are you staring at?" He demanded rudely, eyeing the surrounding area suspiciously.

"Um, I don't, I was-" Leia stuttered. Suddenly, tears came to her eyes. She didn't know what to say!  
"Who were you looking at?" The guard demanded of the crying little girl.

'Don't say anything, Leia,' Anakin told her, fidgeting nervously with his cloak. 'It's ok; we'll come get you. But you have to talk to him first. Make sure he doesn't know we're here.'

Leia was scared; her daddy had never talked to her inside her head before. And he had told her and Luke that talking like that could lead to bad things if they didn't know how to use it properly. Was this a bad thing, or not? She didn't know if it was really daddy or just someone pretending to be him. So many bad people had talked to her today, she didn't know who was bad and who wasn't! She looked around again, to try to make sure it was Anakin talking to her, but then remembered that she had to pretend not to know.

"Where are you looking?" Asked the guard again, jabbing her with the back of his blaster.

Leia suddenly felt a surge of pain and anger come at her through the Force, and she began to cry more. It was quickly gone though, and she looked back up into the guard's face.

Anakin cursed himself for not having broken his connection with Leia when the guard hit her- he had just let his little girl feel a taste of the anger inside of him, and it killed him to see her sad expression. However, he quickly blocked her out again, and watched proudly but sadly as she faced up to the guard.

"Who's there?" The guard demanded again.

"I…I…" Said the little girl, very confused and scared about the whole situation.

"It's ok," the guard said, now trying the tactic of sympathy. "You can tell me, I'm not going to hurt you."

He seemed to be telling the truth, Leia thought… but he had just hit her with his blaster! And blasters could really hurt people if they got shot off in front of you…so that proved that he wasn't telling the truth, which was a very bad thing to do, mommy said.

"Did you see your daddy?" The guard asked. "Because he shouldn't be here…"  
How did he know? Leia wondered. Well, if he knew, it was ok to tell him, wasn't it? But… something felt wrong. The daddy voice had said not to tell…

"I, I was…"

"Come on, little girl, spit it out!" The guard yelled angrily.

"I don't know," Leia began to cry. "I have to go the bathroom!" She said suddenly.

The guard sighed. So that was all that this had been about… "Ok," He said. "Go on." He rolled his eyes and watched as the girl walked into the outhouse just a few feet away.

'That's my girl,' Anakin thought, proudly, and he felt Obi Wan's hand on his shoulder, reflecting the same sentiment- they were both impressed with the little girl's strength and quick thinking.

"Now," Obi Wan said suddenly, and before the young Sith supporters knew what had hit them two Jedi Masters had Force pulled their blasters off of them and were attacking everyone in the area.

"Where are our light sabers?" Anakin yelled to Obi Wan as he cornered the group. "Did you see where they took them?"

"I don't know, ask," Obi Wan yelled, cornering his own group of them. Anakin was confused at first, but then realized he meant to ask Sidious' followers.

"Where are our weapons?" Anakin yelled menacingly, but, though his victims all cringed, they made no reply. "_Where_?" Anakin tried again more forcefully.

'Anakin, remember,' Obi wan told him through the Force. 'They're just children, like Han. We can help them…'

"You don't want to work for Sidious," Anakin said, this time with compassion in his voice. "We can give you better lives, an opportunity…"

"He has given us everything we have!" Answered one.

"He has only given you lies and deception!" Anakin pleaded. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. "Padme!" He yelled.

"Where?" Obi Wan asked, ready to help her.

"We need her," Anakin answered. "She could convince them, she would make them see…she could help them"

"Ah yes, politics…" Obi Wan smiled.

"Can you handle them for now?" Anakin asked.

"Yes, I've got it under control," Obi Wan assured him, as he crowded all of the unarmed enemies into a corner. "But hurry, who knows when Sidious will arrive."

Leia chose this moment to walk back outside, and she stared in front of her, excited. "Daddy! Master Obi Wan!" She screamed, running into her father's arms.  
"Hi angel!" Anakin cried, scooping up his daughter and holding her to him tightly. "It is so good to see you again. Leia, where is Luke? Where is mommy?"

"I don't… I don't know," Leia said sadly. She looked up at him, afraid he would be angry.

"Don't worry, we will find them," Anakin assured her, kissing her cheek. "We can find them through the Force, right? Do you know how to do that?"

"Like when I know if Luke is nearby?" Leia asked.

"Yes, only you can do it with everyone. Mommy too, and me. Have you ever done that?"

Leia looked at him, frustrated. "I know when you're there, but not mommy."  
"Ah," Anakin said, smiling at her and wrapping her in his cloak. "That's because Luke, and you, and I, can use the Force, and mommy can't. But you will learn how to know when she, and everyone else, is near you too. I will teach you that."

"Why can't mommy use the Force?"

"Only some people can use the Force, Leia. That's what makes the Jedi different- that's why we need to help people, because we can do things that other people can't. We are better at defending ourselves and others because of the Force. Does that make sense to you?"

"I guess," Leia answered, furrowing her brow.

Anakin kissed her forehead. "It will make more sense to you later. Now, I can tell that mommy's this way," he said, starting to walk towards where he felt Padme's presence. "Can you feel that Leia?"

"I don't know," Leia answered honestly.

Anakin laughed. "It's ok. Do you know where Luke is?"

"I think he's this way too," she answered.

"I agree with you," he smiled at her. "Now Leia, do you know why they took you away from Luke and your mother?"

"No," Leia said sadly. "But it was mean."

"Well you're right about that," He told her. "Now Leia, I need you to be very quiet, and I need you to block- umm… do what you do when you play hide and seek with Luke. So that he can't find you."

"Ok!" Leia nodded excitedly, and Anakin soon couldn't feel her presence at all.

'Wow,' he thought to himself. No four year old he'd ever met could block her Force signal that well. It unnerved him slightly, knowing that even at that young age she could completely escape detection by him. But, he would have to worry about that later.

"Ok, Leia," he said, setting her down. "Stand right here and don't ever let me get out of your sight, ok?" He walked slowly forward, to gauge how many guards were around. Amazingly, the place seemed fairly deserted, save a few guards sitting lazily in the middle of the group of huts. He assumed that they must have all been drawn toward the little battle that had just taken place. Using the Force, he attracted all of their attention to a hut at the complete opposite end of the circle from the one in which Padme and Luke waited. As they all went to check on that hut, he grabbed Leia and slipped inside.

Padme sat, hugging Luke to her, tears in her eyes, when suddenly a hand slipped over her mouth. She tried to scream, but it restrained her. Suddenly, bright blue eyes looked in to her own.

"Sorry, but I couldn't risk you making a noise," Anakin said, and then took his hand off of her mouth and kissed her. "Let's get out of here."

Padme's senses flooded with happiness and reassurance. She clung to Anakin, and then pulled Leia to her, never wanting to let her go again. "How did you-"

"Never mind that, I'm here now. We don't have much time, come on!" He felt Luke silently squeezing his leg, and he picked up his son and hugged him tightly. "I missed you," Anakin told him, kissing his nose. He grabbed Padme's hand and pulled her up. "Are you ok?" He asked, immediately putting his hand on her stomach.

"I'm fine, and so is the baby, although… the baby needs to eat…"

"We'll be out of here in no time," Anakin assured her, trying to hide the worry that was engulfing him. He walked to the back wall, which this time was made out of wood. He gently Force pulled the wallboards out one by one, until the whole family could step outside at once. He then replaced them carefully, and, grabbing Leia and Luke and holding Padme's hand, he led his family back to where Obi Wan held the group of Sidious' followers.

"I was so worried, Anakin," Padme whispered, looking up into her husband's eyes. "I don't know why they took Leia, but I really feared the worst..."

"I know, I know," Anakin said, unsure of how to comfort her. "We will get out of here, and go back home, and nothing like this is going to happen again. I promise you, I won't let it."  
Padme just smiled and nodded silently. She took Leia from Anakin and held her close.

"Mommy I tricked the guard!" Leia said enthusiastically. Padme looked confusedly up at Anakin.

"It's true, actually," He said smiling. "I'll explain later."  
Padme nodded, and kissed Leia's head. "Where's Obi Wan?"

"Well, you're about to see," Anakin answered. "We kind of need your help."  
"Well it's about time," Obi Wan said as they approached him. "Your family could really use some work on punctuality, you know."

"Now is really not the time for lectures, Master," Anakin joked.

"Did you explain this to Padme?" Obi Wan asked, one eye always on his prisoners.

"No, I'll do that now. Come here," he said, pulling Padme off to the side. "We need you to get our light sabers back. And if you can, try to convince these kids that they want to help us, not Sidious. Try, but it might be impossible. But we definitely need you to get them to tell us where Han and the Wookie are, and where our light sabers are, can you do that?"

"Why me?" Padme asked, confused.

"Because," Anakin smiled at her. "You're the one who knows how to convince someone you're right… without aggressive negotiations."

Padme laughed. "Well, all right." She walked over to Obi Wan and began to talk to the group that he held captive. Anakin helped Obi Wan to watch them, making sure to keep an eye on Luke and Leia who stood nearby. Almost immediately, Padme had captivated her audience, and they seemed as if they would help her.

"Ani?" Padme turned to him hesitantly. "I want you and Obi Wan to go somewhere else. I think your presence is hurting this endeavor. It's scaring them."  
"We can't leave you with them," Anakin responded immediately. "I refuse to put you in that kind of danger."

"Just step out of ear shot. You'll still be able to protect me and keep them in check…please?" Padme looked at Anakin, her eyes begging him to obey.

Anakin sighed. "All right," he said reluctantly. "We'll watch Luke and Leia over here…be careful, Padme."

"Don't worry," she assured him. Anakin and Obi Wan stepped away with Luke and Leia.

"She'll be fine, Anakin," Obi Wan reassured him. "She knows what she's doing."

"I know she does, it's just… I just…"

"I know," Obi Wan said warmly, putting his hand reassuringly on his shoulder.

Soon, Padme walked over to them. "Your light sabers are with Sidious, I'm afraid… but Han and the Wookie are right here, in that hut," she pointed to a hut close by. "They all seem very confused and unsure…it's obvious that what Han told us is true, these are people who have been brainwashed for a long time. I think that we could convince them of Sidious' bad intentions, but I don't know what we would do… I mean how are we supposed to help so many of them? I know there are tons more still with Sidious and throughout this camp, and by the way, who knows how many more innocent prisoners there are? We might not be the only ones. I-"

"Hold on, hold on," Obi Wan said, smiling. Suddenly, Obi Wan looked down as he felt a tug on his leg, and saw Luke clinging to it, smiling up at him.

"Yeah, they do that…" Anakin said, laughing.

"Ok," Obi Wan replied, unsurely. "Listen, what I think we should do is get ourselves and Han and the wookie out of here, in whatever way we can. Then we have to go back to the Senate and the Council and see what they suggest we do here… whether us escaping includes killing Sidious or not, is simply up to fate. Let's just try to get out of here, and when we get back to Coruscant we can worry about everything else. We can manage to get out of here without light sabers, I'm sure…what do you think?"

"I agree that we have to think first about getting ourselves out of here, or else no one will ever even be informed about this… but as soon as we get back to Coruscant we have to make sure this situation is addressed, and-"

"Padme," Anakin said, cutting her off. "You're the Chancellor. You decide what situations to address…"

"Right…so I agree with Obi Wan," Padme said.

"Master!" Said a small voice from beneath Obi Wan. Obi Wan looked down and saw Luke staring up at him, bright eyed.

"Um, yes Luke?" Obi Wan asked, as he, Padme and Anakin shared an amused look.

" I agree too!" Luke said importantly, though he didn't really understand what they were talking about.

"So do I!" Leia yelled, not wanting to be outdone by her brother. The twins shared a confused glance, and smiled proudly at their parents and Obi Wan.

"Well I guess it's settled then," Obi Wan laughed. "Anakin, go get Han and the Wookie, quickly. We'll just slip back into the woods and be gone, hopefully before Sidious realizes anything is wrong. Hurry!"  
Anakin rushed into the hut and found Han and the Wookie in the midst of several escape attempts. They had tried bursting through the walls and digging through the floor, and were actually very close to getting out.

"Come on," Anakin said. "We've got to get out of here now. Han, um… wookie, come on!"

"His name's Chewy," Han said. Anakin nodded and they followed him out.

"You won't say anything," they found Obi Wan instructing the group of prisoners, waving his hand, about to perform a Jedi mind trick.

"Don't!" Han yelled suddenly. Obi Wan turned to him, confused and surprised. "Don't, it's what he does. If you do, they'll never trust you again…"  
"Thank you," Obi Wan said, staring at the boy, impressed. "Please," he said to his captives. "Don't tell them, we're going to come back to help you…"

"How do we know that?" One yelled, and they all looked very cynical.

"Padme?" Obi Wan turned to her for assistance, and she soon had them all convinced that they would be back.

Turning to each other with suddenly hopeful glances, Obi Wan, Anakin, and Padme led the children and Chewy into the woods. Just as they reached the edge of the trees, they heard shouts approaching them, Sidious' unmistakable cackle among them.

"Hurry!" Anakin yelled urgently, and soon they were running through the trees as laser blasts pursued them. Anakin scooped up Luke and Obi Wan held Leia, and they ran forcefully through the trees. They could see the ship ahead, and felt confident that they could make it, but Sidious and his men were close behind.

"Run on to the ship, and grab the light sabers that are on there," Anakin instructed Padme. "Hurry!"

She ran on board and quickly found the light sabers, rushing back out to throw them to Obi Wan and Anakin. They expertly deflected the blasts, but just as the children were rushing on to the ship, a blast hit Leia in the arm. She screamed, but continued to run- everyone could see she'd be fine, but Anakin froze.

"Anakin, no!" Obi Wan yelled, knowing what was about to happen.

Without thinking, without even realizing it, Anakin threw himself on to a cackling Sidious and his light saber met the Sith's red blade.

Hello all- that was a randomly long chapter, I hope it wasn't too rambling. I'm really ready for them to be home soon, so I hope to wrap the Kashyyyk part up very soon…hope you're enjoying!


	17. Chapter 17

**Ch. 17**

"She's just…" Anakin yelled, accosting Sidious' blade, "a little…" he grunted, pushing Sidious back towards the woods, "_girl_!" He screamed, letting his anger power him.  
"Good, Anakin, good," Sidious laughed maniacally. "Your anger makes you stronger."

"Anakin, don't do this," Obi Wan yelled, trying to bring back Anakin's rationality. "Don't give in to your anger like this, you're not helping Leia here, you're only hurting her…" Obi Wan knew that Sidious had purposefully had Leia shot, knowing that if one of the children were hurt Anakin's anger would be almost uncontrollable. In fact, Obi Wan thought, that must be the reason Leia had been separated from Padme and Luke- they probably had been planning to hurt her. 'Thank the Force we got there in time,' he thought to himself, watching helplessly as Anakin attacked the Sith. He wanted to help, but knew that it would only encourage Anakin to fight.  
"I hate you!" Anakin yelled at Sidious, expertly attacking him.

"Wonderful, Anakin," Sidious said evilly. "You've gotten so much stronger since the last time I fought you…"

"He only wants to seduce you with the Dark Side Anakin!" Obi Wan tried to reason with his friend. "Do not give in to him, Anakin! You're so much better than this…"

Anakin heard every word Obi Wan said, and knew that he was right, but something kept him attacking Sidious, a deep hatred for this man who had caused so much grief and pain for Anakin's family. Anakin wished he could stop, or at least use the good side of the Force to power him instead of his hatred, but something in him that he couldn't even control wanted revenge. As Obi Wan held off the rest of Sidious' group that he had led to the ship, Anakin continued to fight the Sith, forcing him back into the woods, Sidious encouraging Anakin all the time.

Back on the ship, Padme rushed to Leia at the ship's entrance- she had been sitting in the cockpit preparing the ship to takeoff when she had seen her daughter shot. Tears streaming down her face, she saw Luke hugging a whimpering Leia tightly in his arms, Han quickly wrapping her arm in a bandage. Luke and Leia were always able to comfort each other better than anyone else- despite their constant teasing and bickering, it was obvious that the loved each other very much and had a deep connection as twins, especially Force-sensitive twins.

"Oh, Leia," Padme cried, rushing to her daughter's side.

"She'll be all right," Han said warmly, "Really it just nicked her. I think the target of this wasn't Leia, but..." Han nudged his shoulder towards Anakin, though he didn't have to. Padme knew exactly what was happening, and she knew that Anakin's protectiveness of his family was a dangerous thing to mess with- obviously, this had been Sidious' plan all along.

Padme carried Luke and Leia inside, Han following quickly, and placed them safely in the cockpit.

"Are you sure she's ok?" She asked Han worriedly.

"Yes, the blast just barely nicked her arm," he pointed out. "Look, you can see for yourself." He removed the layer of bandage he had just put on and revealed nothing more than a bad flesh wound. Padme was somewhat comforted, but the knowledge that her little girl's soft, perfect skin had just recieved its first scar caused Padme to feel somewhat nauseous.

"I'm like daddy now!" Leia announced proudly, and Padme was jolted out of her sadness to look Leia straight in the eye. Padme couldn't help but think how strangely touched Anakin would be by that comment when he was finished claiming revenge on Sidious. Seeing that Leia was already over the whole thing, and fine, Padme calmed down.

"You stay here," Padme instructed the twins. "And you stay here too," she said to Han, in a tone that told even him not to argue. "I need you to look after them," she added, knowing that it would make him feel less like one of the children and more like the strong fighter he wanted to be. Han nodded and Padme rushed outside to find Obi Wan having cornered Sidious' followers and Anakin still fighting hard against Sidious.

Padme watched, tears in her eyes, for the first time truly fearing for her husband's life… normally his enemies were no match for him, especially in the time of peace when he would only be dealing with small scale criminals and gangsters, but she knew that if anyone could hurt Anakin, it was Sidious- if there was a time to worry, it was now. She searched for a way to help Anakin or Obi Wan, looking for a blaster or weapon that was misplaced, but she could find nothing at hand. So she watched helplessly as her husband tried to defeat his longtime enemy, knowing the whole time that the best thing for him would be to stop and go home and let the other Jedi deal with Sidious later.

Sensing Padme's distress, Obi Wan called to her- luckily he was in a position where she could hear him and Anakin couldn't.

"He'll be all right," Obi Wan tried to reassure her. "Initially he was letting his rage control him, but he has calmed down. I do feel that the best thing would be to leave and let the Council deal with this, but this could be a good thing. Anakin is very strong- he will probably win."

Padme nodded, biting her lip- though Obi Wan's words did help to quell her nervousness and fear, she couldn't help but feel her heart shudder every time Sidious struck at Anakin. Suddenly, Anakin yelled to her.

"Padme, go inside the ship," Anakin instructed strictly.

"What? Anakin why should I-"

"I don't want you to see this," he said, staring the whole time intently at Sidious, concentrating fully on the fight.

"Anakin, I see you fight all the time, this is ridiculous," she said stubbornly.

"This is different," Anakin said, his tone increasingly pressing as he continued to battle Sidious.

"What do you-"

Suddenly, before Padme or Obi Wan could register what had happened, Anakin had Sidious kneeling in front of him, both of their sabers crossed over his throat (A.N. Killing of Dooku style). He stared intently at Sidious; his anger extremely evident yet suppressed just enough so that he wasn't allowing it to control him- he was thinking for himself. Padme clapped her hand to her mouth, suddenly realizing that Anakin's job as a Jedi meant killing people. She had seen him kill clone troopers and strike down battle droids, but, though she knew the clones were living, their mass numbers and helmets dehumanized them as much as she didn't want to admit it.

"You don't have the guts," she heard Sidious cackle evilly, and her hatred for him only increased.

Sheknew now that Anakin was right- she had never seen him actually kill someone when he was staring him right in the eye- much less someone she knew very well- at least, had known when he was Palpatine. Though she had always known it subconsciously, she found it very eerie now to realize that Anakin had to kill people routinely, even if they were evil, even if she wanted, as she did with Sidious, for them to die.

"Please," Anakin begged her, and without a word she turned around and went inside.

His one inhibition gone, Anakin pulled the blades to him and finally killed Sidious. He let out a gulp of air and, panting and sweating heavily, dropped Sidious' red blade next to his corpse.Anakin turned around right away, not wanting to think about the events of the past few days, and walked slowly towards Obi Wan.

"You did well, Anakin," Obi Wan said warmly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I know you feel as if you've failed your family, putting them through this and then jumping into a fight with Sidious, but I'm proud of you- once you engaged him in battle you let your Jedi senses take over, and not your rage. You really have matured- you really deserve to be a Master."

Anakin gave a weak smile, knowing that Obi Wan understood how much his words had really meant.

"Thank you," Anakin said, sighing. "What are we going to do with them?" He nodded towards the group of Sidious' followers, whose eyes were beginning to peer out of their cloaks.

"I couldn't kill them," Obi Wan said, looking tenderly at them. "We can help them…"

"I know," Anakin responded, understanding completely, and agreeing with Obi Wan. "They're just kids…"

As heads emerged from beneath the cloaks, Anakin and Obi Wan could see now that the oldest looking one among the children was about 15, the youngest no more than 10. It broke the Jedi Master's hearts to see how manipulated these children had been, having been instilled with Sidious' twisted ideas since they were tiny.

"I think we have to go to the council first," Anakin said warily, not knowing if it was truly the right step or not.

"I agree… but how can we just leave them here?"

"We'll stay," said a voice from the ship. Han and Chewy were walking down to them, Han striding confidently but compassionately among his former peers.

"They might be angry with you," Obi Wan warned him. "They can't just suddenly forget everything they knew..."

"Now that he's gone," Han began, shuddering as he looked towards Sidious, "They'll realize… they already have realized a little bit, I think. Chewy and the Wookies will keep us safe, and I'll try to explain everything to them, all right? I'll be fine," he added, his defiance showing itself again. "Just make sure you come back. For the Wookies, if no one else- Kashyyyk needs help recovering from the time of Sidious' presence."

"We will," Obi Wan promised, putting a hand on Han's shoulder. "For everyone...This problem needs to be dealt with seriously, I know the Council will respond immediately."

Han smiled and Chewy gave a grateful growl as Obi Wan and Anakin ascended into the ship.

As Anakin walked in, Padme jumped into his arms, and he held her closely and kissed her before turning quickly to Leia.

"Is she all right?" He asked, hugging his daughter to him.

"Yes," Padme assured him, looking warmly upon her husband and children.

"I'm like you daddy!" Leia repeated proudly. "Battle scars!"

Anakin laughed, unsure of whetherit was a good thing or a bad thing that his four year old daughter wanted scars to be like him. He sighed as he thought of the scar over his eye, and the mechanical arm, not to mention the hundreds of other small scars he had scattered about on his body. At least his children saw them as marks of bravery, and weren't afraid of them...

"I want some," Luke pouted, feeling left out.

"Don't worry Luke," Anakin assured his son, giving him a hug. "You will be the best Jedi in the order one day and you will have just enough battle scars, I promise. But not too many," Anakin added hastily, nervously noticing Padme's frown.

"Maybe I'll lose an arm like you, daddy!" Luke said excitedly, studying for the millionth time his father's mechanical arm.

"Oh, I hope not," Anakin smiled at his son. "Your arms are too good to lose."

"But I heard mommy say how much she really likes your metal arm!" Leia interjected, smiling brightly.

"Uh," Anakin laughed uneasily. "When was that Leia?" He asked, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

"I don't know I heard you from down the hall and she said well it certainly hasn't made you hold back at all!" Leia said quickly, beaming at her father. Padme looked away, and Anakin shifted uncomfortably in front of Leia.

Obi Wan snorted from the pilots seat, and stared intently out the window as they left Kashyyyk's atmosphere and were once again in space, trying to hide his amusement.

'Very funny,' Anakin shot to him through the Force.

"Well if it didn'thold him backit wouldn't make me hold back at all either!" Luke said proudly, still convinced, as Leia was, that their mother had been completely serious and had been talking about fighting when she had said that.

"Um," Padme quickly cut her son off. "Let's not think about that now, ok?"

"It's ok mommy, I know you don't want me to lose an arm yet, but it will be ok, I promise!" Luke assured her.

"Yes, lose an arm, that's what I don't want you to do," Padme muttered, and Anakin burst out laughing. Padme hit him, and he enveloped his whole family in a huge bear hug. As the twins giggled, Anakin and Padme smiled lovingly at each other, both understanding the extreme relief of being together and safe again. Anakin kissed her tenderly and went to join Obi Wan in the cockpit. After a minute, he turned back towards them, frowning.

"Well, aren't you going to follow me?" He asked, and the twins squealed in delight and ran to sit on their father's lap and watch the stars. Padme followed more slowly and sat next to Anakin and Obi Wan, smiling at each of them and happy to have her family and friends safe again and to finally be going home.

Hi all! So sorry it's been so long since I updated, but I was away! But I'm back now! And now I get to write the happier parts, but I also get to have Anakin confront the council in anger about why Sidious was still alive! Exciting… hope you're enjoying this still! It's fun to write!

Sewardsfolly


	18. Chapter 18

**Ch. 18**

Having dropped Leia and Luke off at the temple medical ward with Padme, Anakin marched through the temple furiously, both personally insulted and worried for the credibility of the Jedi. He could only imagine three scenarios in which Sidious could have been alive and free, the best being a terrible one and the worst making him void of any trust in anyone and extremely sick to his stomach. What Anakin hoped had happened was that Sidious had escaped and the Jedi Masters hadn't even known- perhaps the Sith had found a substitute to be executed for him, so that the Jedi would think he was dead. The second scenario was that the Jedi knew he had escaped, and had told no one and apparently done nothing, which brought Anakin near tears to even think about. The third, which made Anakin lose all hope in what he believed, was that for some reason the Jedi had let Sidious go knowingly, had decided he shouldn't be killed, and had tried to keep it a secret even from Anakin- or, especially from him, he mused.

He desperately wanted to believe it was the first one, and he truly thought that it was, and yet he couldn't help but feel the urge to berate the other Masters, and yell at them, and release the pent up anger that he had inside of him. He knew it was unhealthy, and not Jedi-like, to want this, but he had suffered so much pain and frustration, his children and wife had suffered so much, that he found himself placing blame everywhere. Worst of all, the Council knew how personally Sidious affected Anakin, how much Anakin had fought to destroy him, how Sidious had disgustingly exploited Anakin's feelings for Padme, and so Anakin felt extremely insulted and frustrated for having been kept in the dark about the whole matter had the Council known anything.

As Anakin marched through the temple halls, what he didn't know was that the Jedi were holding one of their monthly assemblies. Padawans and Younglings had to attend, and the assembly simply went over the Knights' and Masters' work and events of the past month and the Younglings often gave presentations. Several knights usually attended, and Masters showed up sporadically, though not often, and it was always exciting when one of the Masters or Council Members (other than Yoda and Mace who ran the assemblies) showed up.

With Obi Wan following behind desperately, trying to get Anakin to calm down, Anakin continued to march on angrily. Sensing Yoda and Mace in the largest room in the temple, the assembly room, and not thinking clearly enough to figure out what was probably going on, Anakin burst through the doors at the back of the room.

Every head turned, the youngest Younglings sitting on the floor in the front, Padawans and knights in chairs behind them, and Yoda and Mace standing in front of them all. Without even seeing them, Anakin marched dramatically down the middle aisle, his waving cloak practically hitting the Younglings he passed, his expression severely betraying him so that everyone in the room knew that something serious had happened. The youngest took it as very exciting, but the older Padawans, the knights, and especially Yoda and Mace, could tell that something was extremely wrong.

"Sidious wasn't killed?" Anakin yelled- it was an accusation. Whispers immediately broke out among everyone in the room. "How could you not tell me?" While Yoda and Mace looked at Anakin and at each other, shocked, and everyone whispered nervously to one another trying to understand the situation, Obi Wan suddenly burst in the room after Anakin.

"Anakin! Wait!" Obi Wan yelled desperately. Everyone now turned to him, and suddenly they began to notice the tattered appearance of Anakin and Obi Wan's cloaks, and the fresh cuts and bruises all over them. Anakin and Obi Wan reached the front of the room at about the same time. Obi Wan began to give a small bow to Yoda and Mace, but Anakin glared at him menacingly so he stopped and stood still. Yoda and Mace looked at each other worriedly, then back at Anakin, while Obi Wan cursed himself for having let Anakin influence his actions, knowing he would hear about that later when Anakin had calmed down.

"Anakin," Mace began, "what… how…what?" He and Yoda looked very confused.

"That's right," Anakin said angrily. "Sidious, not killed- I was under the impression you two personally saw to his execution-"

"Not in front of the Younglings Anakin," Mace scolded.

"What, because they're not old enough to deal with it?" Anakin shouted. "Well I'll have you know that my own two _four year old_ children had to deal with being kidnapped by Sidious." Out of breath, Anakin paused to stare at the Masters and await their reactions.

"What?" Yoda asked incredulously, and he and Mace stared dumbfounded at Anakin, and then at Obi Wan, who nodded sadly. That news certainly made Anakin's anger much more understandable than before.

"Yes, in fact Master Kenobi and myself were kidnapped as well; luckily, we are trained to escape situations like that," Anakin added, now calmed down some and starting to be more sarcastic than angry. "And, oh yes, my wife, I don't know if you know her, The Chancellor of the Republic." He finished dramatically, and Obi Wan rolled his eyes.

"What, what… how did you…" Mace stuttered, still fighting to believe Anakin's story.

"Funny how _no one_ seemed to notice," Anakin commented sarcastically. This time Obi Wan kicked him, restoring his authority. Anakin smirked at Obi Wan so that neither Yoda nor Mace could see.

Anakin backed down some, and continued more slowly and diplomatically. "Something terrible is, well, was, happening. We must have a council meeting, right away."

Yoda and Mace eyed each other again, then nodded.

"Agree with you, I do. This news you bring us- terrible," he said respectfully. "How no one knew, understand I do not." The Masters had come to understand, if not fully accept, Anakin's temper. Though they still reproached him for it, even Mace understood that if Anakin's story was really true, he had been through a lot and was entitled to be angry.

"Is this all true, Obi Wan?" Mace asked, just to confirm.

"Unfortunately, yes," Obi Wan informed them. "It seems there has been quite a lot going on that we don't know about."

"The Chancellor was really captured?"

"Yes, but only because she went after the children with us… we will explain everything," Obi Wan answered. "I believe she will be speaking to the Senate very soon, but it might help if she were with us to embellish the story. We were separated for some time."

"In one hour, a meeting we will have. The children, bring, as well," Yoda instructed. "For now, explain this to the Younglings who saw you, we must."

Anakin and Obi Wan nodded, and this time Anakin did bow. They walked slowly back down the aisle in the middle of all of the Jedi, everyone staring at them in awe and confusion. Anakin smiled sheepishly, and he and Obi Wan exited.

"You could have treated them with a little more respect, Anakin," Obi wan said reproachfully.

"Oh they don't mind," Anakin said casually.

"It's as if you're my Padawan again," Obi Wan sighed, shaking his head.

"Except that if I was still your Padawan I would have had to bow and say, 'Yes Master,' every five seconds," Anakin laughed.

"It wouldn't hurt you to do that anyway, you know," Obi Wan said, amused.

"Yes Master," Anakin said, bowing elaborately. Obi Wan pushed him mid-bow, and Anakin fell over in a very undignified manner.

"Obi Wan, please don't beat up on him too badly," a voice said from in front of them. They turned and saw Padme standing in a doorway right in front of them. "Have pity on him, he's not strong enough to defend himself," She teased, walking over and giving Obi Wan a hug as they laughed.

"Hey!" Anakin yelled frustratedly, trying to push himself up gracefully. "Hands off of her!" he pulled Padme defensively away from Obi Wan, grumbling, and she and Obi Wan laughed.

"I was just looking for you," Padme told him, kissing him on the cheek. "Luke and Leia are fine, we're all starving. We've got to get something to eat."  
"And how are you?" Anakin asked, concerned.

"The baby's fine, Anakin," Padme assured him, laughing.

"You know that isn't all I care about Padme," he said, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her on the lips.  
"I know," She mumbled, returning the kiss.

"Ok then," Obi Wan said loudly, "I'll just leave you two alone. I have my own business to attend to now that we're back."

"And by business you mean your girlfriend," Anakin teased him. Obi Wan shrugged his shoulders and walked down the hall. "We _will_ find out who it is," Anakin said firmly.

"Oh, of course," Padme agreed, watching frustratedly as Obi Wan walked away. "As soon as life is back to normal, it's my highest priority."  
"Don't you have important things to do like, say, run the galaxy?" Anakin teased her.

"The galaxy seems not to have even noticed I was kidnapped, I'm not sure how much it even needs me," she joked.

"Well they did think we were on vacation-" Anakin began, always defending her, but she cut him off by kissing him.

"I know. Let's go get our children."  
"Where are they?"  
"Oh, I think you'll know very-"

"Daddy!" two tiny little voices cried out, and before Anakin knew it he was on the ground, the twins tackling him.

"Hi angels!" He laughed happily.

"Look!" Leia said proudly, showing Anakin her little scar again. "Aren't I brave?"  
"You are very, very, brave Leia," Anakin assured her, kissing her on the forehead.

"Well, um," Luke mumbled. "Well I'm brave too!"

"Yes Luke, you're very brave too," Anakin told him, giving him a kiss too.

"We're hungry!" Leia announced.

"Well then let's get lunch," Anakin said, getting up and beginning to walk towards the cafeteria. The twins got up and ran ahead, very familiar with the temple, and he took Padme's hand and walked slowly with her, savoring the fact that his family was now safe.

"We have to go talk to the Council in an hour," he told Padme. "They want to see the children too."  
"Of course," she agreed. "I will be addressing the Senate tomorrow, I just wasn't up for it today." Anakin nodded and led her down the hallway.

"I love you," he said softly, pulling her closer to him.

"I love you too," She said, and they entered the cafeteria just in time to see Luke spill an entire tray of food on a Jedi Knight. Sighing and shaking their heads, the Skywalkers happily went to deal with the problems of daily life once again.

"Isn't it nice to just have our normal lives back?" Anakin asked. Padme looked at him, and they both laughed. "Well, at least as normal as our family can get," he corrected himself, smiling warmly at his children.

Hi guys, I think I'm just going to write a couple more chapters and I'm going to skip ahead a couple of months to when the baby is born… don't worry, I'll explain what happens and everything. And a while from now I might skip way ahead to when Leia and Luke are like 18 (or like about the age of ANH) and have fun creating the crazy and hectic Skywalker family, in yet another sequel, just because once I get a lot of chapters I like to start over… Or I could write one in that timeframe completely separate from these, but the back story would be pretty similar to No Boundaries anyway, so it would basically be a sequel so there's no point really starting a whole new thing…eh let me know, hope you're still enjoying, I just have fun writing these.

-sewardsfolly


	19. Chapter 19

**Ch. 19**

Leia gaped at Luke, open mouthed, the corners of her lips turned up into a kind of smile, pointing at him.

"Look what Lukey did! Look!" She yelled to her parents, attracting the attention of the few Jedi in the cafeteria who weren't already staring at the Skywalkers. The Jedi upon whom Luke had dumped his tray looked highly annoyed and yet amused at the same time.

"Yes, we saw it, thank you Leia," Padme said patiently, rolling her eyes. Leia giggled, still amazed, and Luke smiled around at all of the faces turned towards him, obviously proud of the attention he was getting.

"I don't even believe it!" Leia proclaimed, wide-eyed. "We're just standing here and then, boom! Luke drops the tray _all over_ him! I mean really, that's a clear violation of his personal rights!"

Anakin turned to Padme, as no one else could have taught Leia those words. Padme looked around as if she didn't see him, smiling to herself sheepishly.

"Padme," Anakin said loudly, and she turned to him as if just noticing him for the first time, and smiled distantly. "She's four."

"Like I said before, she just repeats what she hears me say!" Padme explained frustratedly.

"Yes, what she hears you say when you purposefully bring her to meetings," Anakin said, laughing.

"You know what, I bring them both, if Leia chooses to repeat it, that's her choice," Padme said defiantly.

Anakin shook his head, laughing. He approached the knight to apologize, and the knight bowed respectfully. "Please," Anakin said warmly, "there's no need to be bowing to me right now," he laughed. "My son has just destroyed your robes, and if anything, you should be angry at me."

The knight smiled. "It's ok, really Master Skywalker," he assured him.

"Trust me," Anakin said, "I've ruined more robes in the past few years than most Jedi ruin in a lifetime- so I know how much of a hassle it is to get new ones. So, we're very sorry. Luke?"

Luke nodded innocently, blushing, pretending to be utterly humiliated and not extremely proud of his accomplishment.

"What do you say Luke?"

"I'm very sorry, sir," he apologized as sweetly as possible, "I didn't mean to."

"That's quite all right, Padawan Skywalker," the knight assured him, and walked away to change his robes.

"Nice dramatically sweet apology Luke," Anakin teased his son. "It won't work with us."  
Luke looked at the ground, muttering to himself dejectedly, as Leia laughed.

"All right, let's try this again," Padme began, but just as she was getting new trays for the children, Anakin put his hand on her shoulder to stop her.

"Wait," he said, getting his 'I have a brilliant idea' look in his eyes. "I just thought of something-"

"Uh oh," Padme said worriedly, teasing him, but Anakin ignored her.

"What if we could get two things accomplished at once?" Anakin asked, and Padme stared at him, extremely confused.

"What?" She asked, raising her eyebrows suspiciously.

"Three things, actually," he continued, still not filling her in on his idea.

"Anakin please, just tell me," she said frustratedly.

"I say we go to Dex's," Anakin suggested proudly.

"And what, exactly, other than eating, would that accomplish?"

"Well, we could stop at home and change, first of all…"

"And the third thing?" Padme questioned unenthusiastically.

"Well, who else would likely be eating there, who just left us five minutes ago and isn't in here?"

"Oh!" Padme understood, suddenly getting his meaning. "That is a good idea!"  
"I know it is," Anakin said, as if it were obvious.

"I've certainly never admired your modesty," Padme said offhandedly, and he turned towards her, pretending to be very insulted. She just laughed, and whenever she laughed, he couldn't even pretend to be upset for more than a second. His frown turned to a smile and he laughed too, then stopped and stared at her. She stopped laughing too, and returned his gaze, looking into his now serious eyes.

"What?" She asked, quietly and lovingly, smiling at her husband.

"I just love you so much," he said, completely seriously.

She smiled, really touched, as he blushed. "I love you too," she said, moving towards him and laying her head against his chest as he hugged her.

"I'm just so glad we're all safe and back home," he added, and she kissed him warmly. He held her to him, but she broke away suddenly, and he looked at her, concerned.

"What is it?" He asked worriedly.

"No one told us to stop…" Padme said, eyeing him warily.  
"Oh no," Anakin said as he looked furiously around the cafeteria for the twins. "Where did they go?"

"Honestly, we take our eyes off of them for one second…" Padme sighed, and she and Anakin once again began the familiar routine of running all over the temple to find the twins.

"You go that way, I'll go this way," Anakin instructed, and Padme nodded and began to run off. However, she turned around quickly, looking at Anakin, annoyed.

"I don't know my way around here!" She reminded him, her hands on her hips.

"It doesn't matter, you don't have a destination," Anakin yelled back, as he continued to run backwards down the hall. "Just retrace your steps and meet me back here in ten minutes, if we haven't found them by then…well, we might never find them."

"Anakin! Don't say things like-" Padme began, but was cut off as Anakin, still running backwards, ran into several Jedi Masters. She laughed out loud, and as Anakin smirked at her she quickly turned to pursue her children so that the Jedi Masters would not see her laughing so improperly.

"Good job using your Jedi instincts, Master Skywalker," one Master teased him, and he bowed quickly and began to run off. When he had run a few feet down the hallway, he turned back. "Have any of you seen my children?" He asked breathlessly, and they all shook their heads and laughed. Anakin groaned and turned around so that he was running forwards in pursuit of the twins.

After what seemed like hours of searching, but had actually only been about five minutes, Anakin and Padme ran into each other in a corridor of the temple.

"How'd you get here?" Anakin asked accusingly. "This is my side!"

"Excuse me!" Padme exclaimed defiantly. "Who says it's your side? I was under the impression that I'm still on my side, so maybe you're the one on the wrong side."

"Look, I know the temple better, and, with all due respect Padme, you can get lost in our own apartment walking from our room to the kitchen."

"Anakin, that was after our anniversary party, and you know I wasn't exactly… in a good state of mind," she said angrily. "And may I remind you that about five minutes later you sliced through the freezer door with your light saber and nearly decapitated _me_ in the process."

"Oh yeah… why, again?" Anakin asked, as they both tried desperately to remember the events of that night.

"I believe you were trying to get rid of the humming noise it was making," Padme remembered, enjoying very much Anakin's embarrassment. "I think you called it the 'stupid Hoth ice monster in our kitchen,' if my memory serves me correctly."

"Well, obviously, your memory of that night can't possibly be serving you very well, considering," Anakin argued defensively.

"No, no, that I remember quite clearly, Anakin," she said confidently, as Anakin grumbled incoherently, pouting. "After that, it does get a little fuzzy," she laughed, and Anakin couldn't help but laugh also.

"Yeah, I don't really remember it at all…but I really did hate that freezer," Anakin confirmed. "I'm glad it's gone, the new one's way better. I seriously couldn't sleep with that thing," He finished proudly.

"Still, I'm not sure using your light saber to slash through it was the right way to deal with the situation," Padme joked.

"For the last time Padme, neither of us was thinking clearly!"

As they both continued to laugh, a very sticky Luke, with a frozen treat dripping fruit juice down his hands and robes, came strolling towards them.

"Oh, hello mommy and daddy!" He said cheerfully, continuing to happily lick his treat, as if it were a business meeting. Padme and Anakin turned to each other, highly amused.

"Um, hello Luke," Padme said, waiting for Luke to explain himself. However, he just continued to eat happily, completely oblivious that his parents were waiting for an explanation. "What are you doing here, Luke?" Padme prompted him.

"Oh," Luke responded, as if just noticing their looks for the first time. "Just taking a walk," he explained matter of factly.

"Where'd you get that?" Anakin asked.

"Master Obi Wan gave it to me," Luke explained. "I saw him at the entrance to the temple, with Sabe," Luke said casually, and Anakin and Padme stared at each other excitedly, shocked. "Oh! I wasn't supposed to tell you that. That's why he gave it to me, promise you won't tell!"

But Padme and Anakin were already rushing towards the temple entrance, hoping to encounter Obi Wan and Sabe somewhere along their path. Luke continued to walk the way he had come, away from his parents, finishing his treat.

"I can't believe it!" Padme exclaimed incredulously. "I can't believe they wouldn't tell me! She's my best friend, she had better tell me everything!"

"I know!" Anakin commiserated, "I am going to make so much fun of him…"

Suddenly, Anakin and Padme looked at each other, laughing. "This is why," Anakin said, and Padme nodded.

"They're over here!" Anakin announced, and Padme looked at him questioningly.

"I'm a Jedi, remember?" Anakin asked sarcastically, and Padme nodded, following him. The entered an atrium-like area where several hallways met each other, and saw Obi Wan and Sabe standing at the far end, arm in arm, talking peacefully.

"We know!" Anakin yelled loudly, as he rushed towards them.

"Anakin, really," Padme scolded, and Anakin looked at her sheepishly. "Faster!" She said, laughing, and Anakin smiled and continued to rush towards them.

"Oh dear," Obi Wan lamented sadly, as Sabe smiled ruefully at him.

"I can't believe you didn't tell us," Anakin pouted, and Padme nodded, crossing her arms.

"It's not very courteous to withhold such important information," Padme said importantly.

"Don't… don't politicize us," Obi Wan protested, and Padme rolled her eyes. "Talk normally."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Anakin demanded angrily.

"Maybe because of how we thought you'd react?" Obi Wan said sarcastically, rolling his eyes and gesturing towards Anakin and Padme who stood staring critically at them.

"We're your best friends!" Padme informed them angrily.

"Probably your only friends, too," Anakin added defiantly, staring at his feet.

"Maybe if you two were a little more mature…" Obi Wan said quietly.

Anakin grumbled incoherently.

"Sabe," Padme said warmly, turning to her friend. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Sabe looked away, blushing. "We just didn't want to make a big deal…"

"Sabe wanted to tell you, Padme," Obi Wan informed her, and Padme looked happier.

"Um, hello!" Anakin said angrily. "What about me?"

"I just knew you would give me a lot of grief about it," Obi Wan said, smiling at Anakin. "I thought I'd hold off on that as long as possible." Anakin again pouted.

"But now that you know…" Sabe said, trailing off, but she and Padme smiled at each other secretly.

"Why don't we all get some lunch?" Obi Wan suggested, and Anakin and Padme nodded. "By the way, where are your children?"

Anakin and Padme turned to each other, suddenly realizing that they had left Luke to wander the halls and hadn't seen Leia in about twenty minutes. Obi Wan raised his eyebrows at them and they sulked off to go and find their children, talking in hushed tones the entire time they were in earshot of Obi Wan and Sabe.

"Look at them, commiserating together," Obi Wan said, and Sabe laughed.

"You're right, this was funny," She said, and he smiled as they continued to walk arm in arm towards the gardens.


	20. Chapter 20

**Ch. 20**

**Warning- serious Anakin Padme mush (my favorite thing… and hopefully yours too!) Enjoy…**

Anakin and Padme strolled hand in hand through the halls of the temple, casually searching for the twins. At this point, the twins had been loose for so long that the Skywalkers knew rushing to find them would do no good- whatever mischief the young Padawans were up to would already be unpreventable, it was only Padme and Anakin's job to encounter them sometime soon and help fix the problems. Both parents were also enjoying the time alone, having found it increasingly rare to have a quiet moment together.

"This is nice," Anakin said quietly, voicing the sentiment of them both. He felt so warm and happy inside just walking through the halls with his wife, looking for their precocious young children- his family was perfect, and he couldn't wait to get the new addition who would arrive in a couple of months. He smiled down at Padme, who gave him an amused smile back.

Padme too was enjoying this, though both Anakin and she found it humorous that they now actually found it peaceful to be searching for the twins when they were undoubtedly up to some kind of awful mischief. This type of situation used to drive Anakin and Padme crazy, but nearly five years of living with their twins had taught them to relish any time alone, even if the reason for being alone wasn't necessarily a good one.

"It is," Padme agreed, inching closer to Anakin's side as he put his arm around her shoulder. "We never have any peaceful time alone anymore… even if it is because our children are most likely wrecking havoc on the Jedi temple."

Anakin smiled, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek. "Oh, I'm sure they're being good," he assured her, smiling confidently.

"Anakin, your idea of being good is quite different from mine," Padme told him. "It is in the mischief department where they expressly take after their father."

"I certainly am good at it, aren't I," Anakin said ponderously, and Padme laughed.

"It's ok though," she told him. "It's one of the things I love about you."

"I know," he said, and she rolled her eyes. "It's this face," he said knowingly, giving her the mischievous and determined look that he knew she loved.

"That's the one," Padme agreed, kissing him.

"It's the one you just can't resist," Anakin said seductively.

Padme, ever-proud, looked away, "Anakin, please, I have far more self control then you give me credit for," she joked. "You, on the other hand…"

"I am the king of self-control," Anakin said loudly, and a Jedi Master passing them in the hallway laughed, and then tried to cover it up as a cough. Padme laughed out loud.

"That's the most preposterous assertion I've ever heard," Padme informed him. "And I'm the Chancellor, I hear crazy pronouncements daily."

Anakin looked at her sadly and defiantly. "What, I've gotten so much better!"

"Yes, you have gotten better, love," she told him comfortingly, giving him a kiss on the cheek. He smiled, thinking he'd won, and she smiled back lovingly.

"You're incredible," Anakin said sweetly, kissing her forehead. Padme giggled, and kissed him on the lips, secretly relishing being able to sneak a kiss without being told by a tiny voice to stop. However, as the kiss deepened, she was ironically jarred from the euphoria of the moment when she heard Leia cough very loudly.

"Ahem," Leia made sure her presence was noticed. "Please, not in front of me, ok parents?"

Anakin and Padme sighed and looked at each other, eyes twinkling with amusement.

"Hello Leia," Anakin said cordially, not taking his eyes off of Padme.

"That's the look that leads to babies," Leia warned, now fancying herself an expert on the subject.

"We're sorry," Anakin told her, now turning and scooping up his daughter. "Is this better?" He laughed, showering her cheeks with loving kisses.

"A little," Leia giggled as her father's unshaven face tickled her. "Ow, you seriously need to shave dad."

Padme laughed in agreement. "Yeah dad," she giggled, "I wasn't going to say anything, but I tend to agree."

"Excuse me but if you two have already forgotten, we've been stranded on Kashyyyk for two days, it's not as if I had time to freshen up," he said defensively, lovingly hoisting Leia in the air up to his shoulder.

"Woah!" Leia giggled. "You're so tall daddy!"

Anakin smiled. "You should have seen Obi Wan's Master, Leia. He was much taller than I am now."

"Wow!" Leia giggled excitedly.

"By the way, Leia, where's your brother?" Padme asked, suddenly remembering that the job was only half accomplished, and that half the trouble was still loose in the temple.

"Haven't seen him in a while," Leia informed her. "Probably still crying about how I stole his frozen fruit thingy away from him."

Anakin and Padme looked at each other, amused.

"That wasn't very nice Leia, why did you do that?" Padme asked.

"He wouldn't share," Leia said simply. "So I took it to teach him a lesson. If he'd shared, we would have both had some, but since he wouldn't share, he didn't get any."

"Leia, in that situation it would have been better to use your words to come to a compromise," Padme told her. "I bet you could have convinced him to share."

"Well I used my light saber instead," Leia said proudly, but Anakin looked at her sternly.

"Leia, that was very irresponsible," Anakin scolded her. "Not only was it mean to take your brother's ice cream, but using your light saber for that purpose is completely against the rules, not to mention very immature. You could have hurt him- a Jedi never uses a weapon to steal, Leia, even from twin brothers, and especially not to inflict pain on anyone innocent and undeserving."

"Who says he's innocent? What's undeserting mean? I was hungry!" Leia said quickly, confused.

"Sometimes I forget she's only four," Anakin said to Padme, who smiled in agreement.

"Anyway, he's not very far away," Leia told them, sensing her brother nearby. "Just over there." She pointed.

"Impressive, Leia," Anakin said proudly. "You're right, he is over there."

Anakin and Leia walked knowingly to another corridor, Padme following behind frustratedly.

"Sometimes I really hate not being Force sensitive in a family full of Jedi," she grumbled, and Anakin hugged her to him.

"It makes you special," he said lovingly, kissing her on the forehead. Padme smiled back weakly, knowing that it actually made her not so special compared to them. "That's not true, you're incredible, Padme," Anakin assured her, reading her thoughts. "You're the Chancellor for Force sake!"

Padme smiled, but then hit him on the arm. "Stop reading my mind," She scolded.

"I'm sorry but we have a very deep Force connection, sometimes it's hard," he told her.

She looked up at him, touched. "Really? You can have deeper connections with some people?"

"Of course," Anakin told her. "When you're in love, like we are, you are deeply connected," he said firmly, kissing her again.

"I like that idea," she said warmly. Knowing that at least to Anakin their love had some kind of form that could be sensed and felt through more than just normal human feeling was quite touching. Padme smiled, finding Anakin's hand and squeezing it as he smiled down at her.

"There he is!" Leia announced as they walked up to Luke, who, instead of mourning over his lost dessert was dueling in the hallway with a Padawan at least three years older than he, and winning.

"Hi!" Luke said proudly as his family approached, never taking his eyes off of his opponent. "Just a minute," he told them as he continued to spar.

"Come on, you two know better than this," Anakin said angrily, picking Luke up quickly and pulling him away from the other Padawan.

"No sparring in the halls," he scolded both of them, as they hung their heads. "Bow to each other," he instructed, setting Luke down in front of the other boy. "And apologize."

They did so, bowed again, and then turned to Anakin, waiting for a punishment.

"Go on, you wouldn't want me to have to report you to the Council do you?" He asked, as the two boys shook their heads nervously. Eyeing Luke one last time, mischievously, the boy turned and ran off, bowing quickly to Anakin as an afterthought.

"I'm sorry Master Skywalker," he said breathlessly, running away.

Anakin turned to Luke, waiting for an explanation.

"We were just playin'" Luke said, looking at the ground.

"I know, but you know that is against the rules, Luke," Anakin said strictly.

"I know, sorry daddy," Luke said. Anakin looked at him sternly. "Master Skywalker," Luke corrected himself, with a hint of an amused glance at Leia. Anakin, content, turned to lead his family towards the Council Room for their meeting. As he walked ahead, Padme caught up with him, placing her hand gently on his arm.

"I like when you're strict, _Master_ Skywalker," She said, raising an eyebrow at him suggestively and brushing her body lightly against his.

Longingly Anakin stared at her, forgetting himself. "Sith, Padme," He said suddenly, regaining his composure. "Please don't do this inside the temple."

Padme smiled, proud of herself, and stepped in front of him to catch Luke, who had run ahead. "King of self-control," she muttered to herself, rolling her eyes, as she grabbed Luke's arm.


	21. Chapter 21

**Ch. 21**

**A.N.** I don't see the need to run through the Council meeting, as it would essentially be them telling the story which you've already read… I'm skipping to directly after it.

As Anakin drove his family home for the first time in almost a week, he stared silently ahead of him, thinking about the meeting that had just taken place. The Council had assured him that they had known nothing of Sidious' escape, having believed him to be dead. The Council expressed extreme gratitude to Anakin and Obi Wan for defeating Sidious and revealing the whole scandal. By listening to Padme and the twins' testimonies as well, they were able to better understand the motives of Sidious and get a clearer idea of the problem as a whole. Immediately, several Jedi had been dispatched throughout the galaxy to search for other systems on which the Sith might have held bases. Yoda and Mace brought several other Jedi to Kashyyyk themselves, to deal with the situation there and bring Han and Chewy back. They had all agreed that the pair deserved their help, at least as much as Han would accept. Padme would address the Senate the next day to deal with the legal issues presented by the situation. The only overlying problem rested in the known fact that there were always two Sith- a special team of Jedi Masters had been sent to search everywhere for the apprentice. Satisfied that everything was being taken care of, Anakin and Obi Wan had accepted the offer of taking a few days off to recover and spend time with loved ones (about which Anakin and Padme had incessantly teased Obi Wan after the meeting), and they had headed home immediately.

Anakin looked over at his family, the twins peacefully taking a much needed nap in the back seat and Padme sitting next to him, staring out the window, also lost in her own thoughts. He felt so incredibly grateful that they were all safe, that he had not had to deal with the tragedy that had seemed so possible just hours ago. He couldn't wait to get them home and spend as much time with them as he could. He made a mental note to make sure that every member of his family, including his unborn child, knew before they went to bed that night how much he loved them and valued them.

Anakin also thought about something which had been worrying him in the back of his mind ever since the children had been kidnapped- the fact that tomorrow was Padme's birthday. He had been thinking about it for a long time, wanting to make it as special as possible and outdo his own efforts of the last year- he tried to make his surprises better each year. But his week to plan all of this had evaporated in front of him, and as soon as he had known the children were safe he had worried about what to do. He wondered if Padme even realized it, the week having gone by so quickly that no one really knew what day it was. He only knew because he had been consciously thinking about it. Most importantly, this was the first year the twins could really be aware of helping him to make their mother's birthday special- last year, as three year olds, the idea of a birthday had obviously excited them greatly, but they had been too young to really help or get into the idea. But this year he could help them to pick out their own presents and make their own cards, and he had been looking forward to it greatly. But now they had no time, and he didn't know what to do. Not to mention that she had to address the Senate on the very difficult matter tomorrow, and Anakin knew that that was a miserable birthday present. He normally convinced her to take her birthday off, but he knew it was out of the question as this address was extremely important.

Padme, staring out the window, was thinking only about how incredibly relieved and overjoyed she was that her entire family was home safely. She couldn't wait to get home and spend time with them; she never wanted to be apart from any of them again. Of course, she knew that she had to address the Senate tomorrow, as much as she dreaded it. She didn't have the energy to go through the hours of preparation it took to dress and make herself presentable for a formal address, not to mention actually writing the speech… Unfortunately, this was the one speech in her years as Chancellor that absolutely could not be postponed- not that she ever let herself postpone speeches anyway. It was ironic, she thought ruefully, that the one speech she actually might have put off was the one that she couldn't avoid. She gazed towards Anakin lovingly, so glad that she had him to support her, knowing that he would stay up all night helping her if the thought so much as passed through her mind.

She began to figure out what she would say, mentally running through all of the necessary components. She had become extremely good at writing speeches in her head, and could essentially go back and edit them in her mind as if she had written them out. She knew she was good at writing speeches quickly, so she wasn't actually worried about getting it done. She simply didn't want to- she wished she could just go home and relax without having to worry about the Senate for a while. She sighed loudly, continuing to plan her speech.

"Are you… are you actually writing a speech in your head?" Anakin asked incredulously, laughing.

"And are you actually reading my mind again, when I ask you constantly to stop?" She retorted, smiling at him.

"I only started to after you sighed so loudly," Anakin said innocently. "I wanted to know why you were so frustrated, so I could help to make it better." He turned towards her and gave her a very sweet face and she couldn't help but smile at him.

"I guess it's ok," she told him, just happy to be conversing casually and happily again, the anxiety of the past week behind them.

"So you were really writing a speech in your head?" He asked again, teasing her.

"Well, Anakin, I have to give it tomorrow, for Force sake," she said frustratedly. "And I just want to know what I'm going to say so that I can spend tonight with my family."

Anakin smiled warmly, as he looked ahead of him at the traffic. "It's ok," he assured her. "I love you even more for it," he said truthfully. It was Padme's little quirks like this one that he loved so much.

She laughed as Anakin finally parked the speeder in front of their apartment. 3-PO rushed to meet them, he and R2 having headed home immediately upon returning to Coruscant to make sure that everything was in order for the Skywalkers' return. Anakin and Padme each picked up a soundly sleeping twin as the droid led them to a warm dinner already waiting for them.

"I think we should just let them sleep," Anakin suggested, and Padme nodded in agreement. They walked into the twins' room and laid them down on their beds. Anakin put his arm around Padme as they stood in the doorway watching their children sleep.

Anakin could have watched them sleep forever, he was just so in love with his whole family and so happy for them to be finally safe at home. The peaceful breathing of his children soothed him as he watched them sleep and thought about how lucky he was.

"I'm so glad we're home." Padme's words jarred Anakin out of his daze, and she giggled as he jumped, startled. He nodded, and took her hand, kissing it and leading her to dinner.

"Wow," Anakin remarked, and Padme looked up at him from her plate.

"What?" She asked smiling as he looked around him.

"So quiet," he commented, and she nodded in agreement as they both continued to silently eat.

"I think having the twins made us lose our skills at dinner table conversation," Padme laughed. It really had been so long since they had had dinner alone together. They rarely went out without the twins, and they certainly hadn't had dinner alone in their apartment in almost five years. Padme felt transported back to the time before the twins' birth, before Sidious, just after they had gotten married. She looked up at Anakin and was suddenly brought back to the present- he looked so much older, so much more mature than the young Padawan she had married. He looked so much more sophisticated and had a weariness about him that only made him look handsomer, not to mention he was much stronger physically.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked her, smiling as he noticed her studying him.

"How much older you look," she told him honestly, and he gave her a look of intrigue and confusion. "Since the last time we had dinner like this, just the two of us," she added, and he smiled.

"I hope I don't look too old," he teased, pretending to be hurt.

"Please Anakin, if anyone, I look old," she sighed, and Anakin now knew that she was thinking about her birthday. However, he said nothing about it.

"You will never stop being young and beautiful to me," Anakin said honestly, and Padme giggled. "I'm serious," he added, and she blushed this time, as she always did when he looked at her so intensely and so lovingly.

"Yeah, right," Padme muttered dejectedly.

"You're done eating, right?" Anakin asked suddenly, and she looked up at him, confused.

"I guess so, why-" He cut her off, suddenly at her side kissing her lovingly and pulling on her hand.

"I think I know how to show you that I meant what I said," he explained, as he led her towards their bedroom, and Padme smiled genuinely. At their bedroom door, he pulled her into a passionate kiss.

"Thank you, Ani," she said to him. "For everything, really everything." Anakin smiled and kissed her lovingly as Padme kicked the door shut.

…………………………………………………………………

"Wake up little Angels," Anakin said softly as Luke and Leia blinked their eyes open, confused.

"Why's it still dark out daddy?" Leia asked- they had never been up so early.

"Do you know what today is?" Anakin asked them, as he cautiously turned their clock around so that they couldn't see how early it was. 'Not that they can tell time, anyway,' he thought to himself, amusedly.

"Mommy gives her speech today!" Luke answered excitedly, as the twins now stared at Anakin, wide awake.

"Yes, but it's also something even more special," Anakin informed them, and their faces lit up.

"What, what is it?" They chorused loudly.

"Shhh, we don't want to wake mommy up," Anakin warned them. "Today," he began, looking intently at them, "is her birthday!"

"IT IS!" They screamed, and Anakin put his hands over their mouths.

"Shhh! I need your help today, we have a lot to do before mommy wakes up, because we lost all of our time to plan it," Anakin explained, and they nodded eagerly.

"Oh no, you're not going to be giving her lots of birthday kisses are you," Leia asked, so that she could prepare herself if the answer was yes.

"Unfortunately for you, I will be," Anakin laughed as Leia looked around angrily. "Now, do you two want to be my helpers today?"

"Yes! Yes!" Luke answered for both of them.

"Ok, get dressed then, we have a lot to do and not very much time," Anakin instructed.

………………………………………….

Padme woke up to see the sun brightly shining on her face, and Anakin missing from her side.

'I must have been really tired,' she thought- she never slept this late. She stretched lazily, then suddenly remembered that today she had to address the Senate. She groaned, being in no mood at all to go through the millions of formalities this day would require. She suddenly seriously missed her handmaidens. She thought back to the days of guilty bliss when she had people fussing over her at every second, especially when she was queen… she sighed, reminding herself how long ago that was, how much happier she was now, how much things had changed…

'How much _I've_ changed,' she groaned, as she looked at herself in the mirror, glaring disgustedly at the reflection that looked so much older now than then it had back in the days she was remembering.

She had secretly been hoping that Anakin would forget her birthday because of the events of the past week- it would be perfectly understandable with all he'd been through, and she really didn't need anything to remind her of the fact that she was another year older. She looked down at her stomach, patting it subconsciously. It did make her feel young and excited to be awaiting another baby, especially because this pregnancy was so much happier than the last- her husband could actually openly experience all of it with her. She knew it was stupid to feel this way, the practical, political side of her told her she was still very young and in all honesty she hardly looked any different. But she couldn't control what she felt, she was getting older, and the fact that Anakin was still in his twenties didn't help matters. She just hoped he didn't suddenly realize one day how much older she was…she sighed, and began to do her hair for the long day she had ahead of her.

"Padme," She heard from outside the door.

"What Anakin?" She asked, her tone a little more annoyed than she had intended.

"Could you come out here for a second?" He said patiently.

" But I- well, all right," she sighed, pulling on her robe and tying her hair back. She did want to see him, especially because he hadn't been there when she woke up. Maybe he actually had the twins up and dressed, she thought optimistically.

Padme opened the door, and gasped. The room was beautifully decorated, breakfast was laid out and several wrapped gifts sat on the surfaces around the room- so he had remembered. Of course he had, she thought to herself, he always did. And she was happy, even though she had told herself she wanted this birthday to be completely ignored, and even though she was slightly embarrassed by it all as she stood in front of them in her robe.

"Anakin," she said weakly, her eyes speaking for her, her extreme gratitude and appreciation obvious. "You didn't have to-"

"Yes, I did," he said cutting her off. She smiled as she saw the twins charging towards her.

"Happy Birthday mommy!" They screamed, tackling her.

"Careful!" Anakin suddenly said worriedly, as he ran over to help her back up and the twins ran around the room, dragging balloons behind them and yelling excitedly.

"Thank you," She said, smiling at all of them.

"Happy Birthday," Anakin said, giving her a kiss. She smiled at him lovingly. The twins showered her with little presents, some things for the baby and some things for her, and she was very touched- obviously, they had picked these out themselves.

"Anakin, when did you…?"

"This morning," he said proudly. "We've been up for hours."

"We got to have breakfast at Dex's!" Luke exclaimed excitedly. "I got chocolate milk and… and pancakes!"

"Ah," Padme smiled amusedly at Anakin. "So that explains why they're like this," she said as they ran around the room and dizzily bumped in to each other.

Anakin grinned sheepishly. "We shopped all morning, they were hungry!"

Padme kissed him lovingly. "These are all wonderful," she told the twins, stopping them momentarily to give them each a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you."

"I think I might have gotten you the best present of all," Anakin said mysteriously, as she looked at him, intrigued.

"Should I get them?" Leia yelled excitedly, and Anakin laughed.

"Whatever happened to keeping it a secret?" He teased her.

"You already talked about it!" Leia said, going to the door. She opened it, and Obi Wan and Sabe walked in, smiling.

"I thought you could use a friend," Anakin said lovingly, "as well as someone to help you get ready today. And maybe Obi Wan, too, I don't know," he laughed, as Obi Wan did too.

"Anakin, how did you know exactly what I needed today?" Padme asked- it really was the best present, especially today. She walked over and hugged Sabe enthusiastically.

They sat down to eat, the twins running around incessantly as they had already eaten breakfast at Dex's. After breakfast, Sabe and Padme went into Anakin and Padme's bedroom to get ready for the Senate address, and Anakin, Obi Wan, and the twins played a game outside.

"You don't know how much I needed you today," Padme told Sabe warmly. "I am dreading this so much, I don't even know why, but I just… I just…"

"I know," Sabe said calmly. "I understand, and obviously, Anakin does too."

"Why do I feel so terrible today? I should be happy, overjoyed, in fact. We're all home safely, my family threw me this incredible birthday breakfast, my life is wonderful right now, why am I in such a bad mood?" Padme asked these questions quickly, so grateful to have Sabe to talk to again. They had been apart a long time, Sabe having found work elsewhere and Padme having been extremely occupied in the Senate. They had truly been best friends when Sabe was Padme's handmaiden, and had shared everything with each other, but now they both had many more responsibilities and jobs that led them apart. Padme had missed Sabe terribly, and was glad to have her back to talk to.

"Well I'm guessing it's because you're pregnant and it's your birthday," Sabe explained simply as she did Padme's hair, and Padme nodded, laughing. "Mood swing, plus feeling old, is never a good combination. And who would want to address the Senate after this week you've just had? Not me, and I had to do it for you a _lot_."

Padme laughed, looking up warmly at Sabe. "You saved me a lot of serious anxiety over the years, Sabe," Padme said, smiling.

"Don't worry, we all feel this way sometimes. Just remember that you're possibly the most envied woman in the galaxy, and you won't feel depressed much longer. You're successful and beautiful and plus, you're married to Anakin Skywalker," Sabe teased.

"Thanks Sabe," Padme said, truly grateful. "But I actually think I have some competition about being envied… now, you can tell me about you and Obi Wan!" Padme smiled expectantly at Sabe, who laughed, and nodded, and began to tell Padme all that she had missed being able to share over the past few months.

**Hey!** I'm going on vacation, for the holidays, maybe I'll get another chapter written before, and if not I'll only be gone about a week so it won't be too long… hopefully no one is holding their breath or anything. Let me know if you're still sticking with me, and enjoying this- I'm still having fun writing it! I think the next chapter will still be this day, and then I'll skip ahead to the baby being born, and be done. Is anyone still on board for a sequel when Luke and Leia are like 16 or 18? I think that might be fun, let me know.

-sewardsfolly


	22. Chapter 22

**Ch. 22**

"So…" Anakin began, smiling boldly and mischievously at Obi Wan as they sat exhaustedly on the couch, having given up trying to keep the twins in line.

"So…?" Obi Wan questioned nervously, understanding perfectly to what Anakin was alluding and not wanting to discuss it.

"So, you and Sabe," Anakin said simply, enjoying very much Obi Wan's obvious discomfort. Anakin was not going to let this go until Obi Wan would talk to him, it was way to much fun to trigger this look of painful nervousness from his usually calm and wise looking friend.

"Yes?" Obi Wan asked, trying desperately to mask his anxiety, not to mention his extreme annoyance, from Anakin.

"Well, thanks for telling me, really," Anakin pouted, crossing his arms over his chest. However his pouting was interrupted as Luke threw a sharp plastic toy ("to Leia!" he explained futilely later) straight at Anakin's head, which began to bleed. As Anakin grimaced and held his hands to his head, and Obi Wan looked on, amused, Leia and Luke stared in shocked fear at what they had done, thinking that their father was seriously injured when in reality it was a minor wound.

"Daddy," they chorused worriedly, climbing onto the couch and staring at the blood on their father's head.

"Hi angels," Anakin said weakly, still wincing from the pain and trying to stop the bleeding with his cloak.

"Are you gonna die?" Leia asked worriedly, her wide eyes full of fear for her father, who couldn't help but laugh.

"No, don't worry Leia," Anakin answered, grimacing. "Head injuries tend to bleed a lot more than normal, so it probably looks worse to you than it is. It's not serious."

"And Leia," Obi Wan added jokingly, as he got a towel to hold to Anakin's head. "It would take a lot more to seriously hurt that thick skull of his."

Anakin smirked at Obi Wan, who was now helping him to bandage it, the bleeding subsiding. The twins gave their father one last tight hug, and he kissed them each and assured them he was fine. Satisfied that he was not dying, they ran off to cause more mischief. Anakin watched them lovingly as they ran off.

"Ok?" Obi Wan asked, putting a hand on Anakin's shoulder.

"Fine," Anakin answered, rolling his eyes. "It's not the first time they've managed to injure me," he laughed.

"Good," Obi Wan nodded, smiling. "Yes, it certainly would appear that you've had a lot of head injuries in your life."

"Yeah, I- wait," Anakin pouted again, realizing that Obi Wan was making fun of him. "You know, you've gotten meaner."

"Oh I'm just joking, you know that, Obi Wan smiled.

"Well, more sarcastic anyway," Anakin argued.

"I learned it all from you, Oh Chosen One," Obi Wan said sarcastically, and Anakin rolled his eyes.

"So, you and Sabe, how's that going," Anakin asked again, vowing to himself not to let it go until Obi Wan discussed it with him. "Come on, I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"Well, its not as if you came running to me to tell me the second you and Padme got together, in fact I think you had been married three years before I knew anything," Obi Wan reminded him.

"But it was illegal then," Anakin argued. "This is different."

Obi Wan smiled. "I know it is…I just knew you'd probe me with all these annoying questions," he teased Anakin.

"Just trying to be friendly," Anakin pouted. "I mean, I could help you, you know. I am the experienced one, with women, after all," he said confidently.

Obi Wan laughed and rolled his eyes- Anakin had such nerve sometimes, but it was what he loved about him. "Right, right. Thanks, I'll… remember that."

"Fine, make fun, I'm just saying, when the time comes that your years of being a Jedi haven't prepared you for, I'm around." Anakin winked.

At that moment, Padme and Sabe walked into the room as Obi Wan laughed.

"What?" Padme asked curiously, as Sabe looked on, smiling.

"You know, you've completely corrupted him," Obi Wan said to Padme, smiling.

Padme looked curiously at the Jedi Masters, then laughed. "Yes, it's really such a shame too," she joked, as she and Sabe continued into the kitchen.

"When do you have to give your speech?" Anakin asked, following them and putting his arms around Padme lovingly.

"Soon," Padme answered, checking the time. "I'm just looking for the draft I wrote, I put it in here somewhere."  
Anakin kissed her reassuringly. "I'm sure you'll find it," he told her. "Just relax a little," he instructed, hugging her to him. He loved when she got flustered about something, especially because he knew he helped to calm her down.

Padme smiled- Anakin always had a way of making her feel as if she had nothing to worry about, and it helped a lot in this situation. However, she still protested and struggled to get away, which Anakin just found all the more amusing. "Anakin, I have to find it," she pleaded, as he kissed her cheek.

"We will," He assured her, not letting her go.

"But time is running out-"

"Just sit down for a second, you'll never find it while you're so stressed out."

"But-" Her dissent got weaker each time, and soon she found herself sitting on the couch tiredly, leaning against Anakin.

"_I_ will find it for you," he promised, kissing her temple. "You, sit."

"Thank you," she said lovingly as he began to search.

Sabe came and sat next to her and smiled. "Anakin's right, you need to relax."

"I know he is, I just feel like there's so much I have to do," Padme explained, running her hand through her hair.

"But there isn't, you're ready, and he will find the speech," Sabe assured her. "And when you're finished at the Senate, you can come back here and forget it and be with your family."

"Right, ok," Padme agreed, calming down. "Thanks."

"No problem," Sabe smiled, as Obi Wan came and sat next to her, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"I thought you were helping Anakin," Padme questioned.

Obi Wan smiled at her, eyes twinkling. "Oh, we found the speech," he told her, handing her a pile of papers. "Seems Luke and Leia made somewhat of a large mess in the kitchen, I thought he could handle that himself."

Padme laughed, nodding. "I think I need you with us always, Obi Wan," she joked. "I've never been able to get him to clean up after them, how do you do it?"

"Remember, Padme, I lived with Anakin for longer than you have. I know how to make him follow instructions," Obi Wan told her. Padme raised her eyebrow at him, and all three laughed, knowing that no one could make Anakin follow instructions.

"He married me illegally when he _was_ your Padawan, so…"

"Ok, ok, I promised I'd watch them for you two tomorrow night," Obi Wan admitted.

"Now that's the _true_ secret to Anakin," Padme agreed. "Bribery."

Obi Wan laughed, "Yes, unfortunately when he was my Padawan that wasn't allowed, which is why he never listened to a word I said."

"I did listen," Anakin argued, now joining them. "You were a great Master, look how well I turned out!"

Obi Wan smiled. "Yes," he said, patting Anakin's back. "I suppose you listened sometimes. I just hope your son is more willing."

"I'll be honest, I'm more worried about my daughter," Anakin told him, and they all laughed. "And I have to deal with her."

As if on cue, Luke and Leia ran from their room onto the couch. Padme and Anakin pulled the twins onto their laps, looking at the children and each other lovingly.

"I love you," Anakin whispered to Padme. "And Happy Birthday." She smiled as he kissed her lightly, Leia scrunching her nose up on his lap all the while. As they sat, Sabe and Obi Wan looked at the family warmly, each thinking about their own future. They hadn't discussed the future at all together, but anyone could see the happiness and love in the Skywalker family, and those who saw it were bound to want to find it for themselves. Sabe sighed, and Obi Wan looked at Anakin, wondering when his young and feisty Padawan had become this loving husband and father who seemed so completely happy and content.

Padme, understanding the sentiment of the moment, turned mischievously towards Sabe and Obi Wan. "It's even better, than it looks," she said simply, turning back to her own family as Sabe and Obi Wan smiled somewhat awkwardly, but happily, at each other.

As they all sat together quietly, Anakin could sense the extreme contentment and relief of everyone in the room- just to be home, and together, and safe was wonderful for him, and he smiled at having his family and friends all in one room, happily together.

Soon, it was time to leave for the Senate, and they all piled together into a speeder. They had all promised to come with Padme to support her and to talk, if necessary, of the experience. Anakin, Sabe, and Obi Wan would take turns watching the children if the twins grew restless and needed to walk around in the halls. They all climbed in, and, after a brief fight between Anakin and Obi Wan over who would drive, settled democratically by a unanimous vote that it should be Obi Wan, they set off for the senate.

…………………………………

The speech went very well, and the Senators introduced several movements to help pursue the case, both about how Sidious had escaped and about taking care of the children he had captured and the planets he had secretly controlled. They had adjourned for two hours, and would vote on what measures to take when they returned. Obi Wan and Sabe had taken the twins to buy a snack, leaving Padme and Anakin some time alone to talk. However, they couldn't find any place to be alone or in peace- the speech had been broadcast live and the press was extremely pushy about talking to her.

"The Chancellor has been through a lot," Anakin told them sternly. "Please, give her some time in peace."  
The press continued to yell for the Chancellor and for Master Skywalker, but Anakin led her away, finally finding a secluded alcove where the press could not find them.

"You did a great job," Anakin told her, kissing her gently.

"I agree, I think it went well, but the problem is the upcoming vote, it will be very difficult for the Senators to agree on what measures to take," Padme worried. "Because this issue is so serious, they have extremely varied opinions, and I don't know that-"

"Padme, just relax," Anakin instructed her, hugging her reassuringly. "It will be ok, at least everyone wants to help, right?"

"Right," she agreed, breathing deeply and calming down. "Thanks…I didn't want to give this speech today, but you helped, a lot." She smiled, leaning into him as he hugged her.

Suddenly, Anakin whipped around, light saber ignited, his eyes darting back and forth quickly.

"What, what is it?" Padme asked worriedly, staring wide eyed at Anakin's sudden movement.

"I don't know," Anakin answered honestly. "But we're in danger…"

"What? How…" Padme protested, refusing to believe that there was more terror in store for them.

"A strong dark presence," Anakin said broodingly. "Nearby…"

"But you killed the Sith, what could possibly be wrong, you did what you were supposed to do!" Padme argued, tears threatening to pour from her eyes, as much as she willed them away.

"No, I didn't," Anakin reminded them. "I only killed one."

Padme stared at him, finally understanding what he was thinking. "Are you saying that-"

"I don't know but… maybe…"

"But… here? Now?" Padme questioned- it was impossible.

"They need us to shut up before too much is said…" Anakin mused. "They probably don't think we've already briefed the Council… I'm so sorry love, I should have told you before how dangerous the information we're dealing with could be."

"Or I should have realized it, it seems obvious now," Padme scolded herself. "I just always let myself believe Sidious was just some crazy maniac, not that he could have a lot more followers than we might think."

"Whatever the case, you aren't safe. Where are your bodyguards?" Anakin asked seriously, staring at her.

"Can't you stay with me?" She pleaded. "Or, can't I help you?" She grabbed her blaster, ready to follow him.

"No," Anakin said sternly. "I don't want you in danger."

"But-"

"I know you aren't afraid," he interrupted her. "But the Republic needs you- you're braver to remain safe, to keep dealing with this."  
"Then stay with me," She begged, not wanting to leave him ever again after what had happened.

"I can't Padme, I have to do this," He said sadly, staring into her eyes.

"Call Obi Wan, or something, someone else-"

"No one else," Anakin said sternly, tearing his eyes off of her to look around him. "I am the one who has to defeat the Sith, Padme, only me- you know it's true."  
Padme looked away, trying to hide her tears from Anakin. She knew it was true, but she didn't want to admit it. She couldn't lose him.

"Please be careful Anakin," she turned back to him, looking deeply in to his eyes. "I need you, the children need you."

"I know," Anakin assured her, kissing her. He began to walk away.

"Wait, where do I go?" She asked, not letting go of his hand.

"Back to a public place," He instructed. "No one would dare harm you in front of the press, find Obi Wan and tell him. And then get to your office, or wherever your safest, and get someone to protect you… and the twins, especially the twins," he added, suddenly realizing the danger his children could be in, and she nodded.

"I love you," he told her, looking back.

"I love you too."


	23. Chapter 23

**Ch. 23**

**A.N. **Sorry the updates are taking longer and longer, I'm busy and also I'm sort of having writers block, very frustrating. I'll try to finish this one up soon and get on to the sequel because I have a lot of ideas for that. I hope you're still enjoying and I'll try to get them out sooner, I'm really sorry!

Padme ran nervously through the deserted halls, trying desperately to hold back the tears in her eyes. She would have just let them fall, but she knew that soon she would once again be surrounded by the hoard of reporters and that she had to maintain her composure in front of them. It was in moments like these (not that there were many quite so difficult as this one) that she hated the attention, hated being in the public eye. She knew it sounded somewhat stuck up to be sick of people caring about her life when she had so much public support and was highly regarded by the entire galaxy, but today she simply needed to just find Obi Wan and her children so that she could get help to Anakin right away. She knew that if she showed any emotion it would simply make the reporters more interested, so as she turned the corner that led to the main hallway she paused to calm herself completely.

It wasn't easy- as soon as she stopped and her mind was no longer focused solely on reaching her destination, the tears fell freely. She turned and leaned against the wall, a hand over her face. Normally this kind of situation would probably not have worried her so much, but the events of the past week had really pushed her to her limit. She had always known that their family would be targeted by political enemies or enemies of the Republic, but she had figured that, especially in this time of peace, no problems that could arise would be anything Anakin and the Jedi couldn't handle. This past week had been a wake up call for all of them, making them realize that maybe they were in even more danger then they thought… She and Anakin had often discussed ways to keep the children and themselves safe, and had realistically looked at possible problems that could arise, but none so serious as this. She sighed, hoping beyond hope that Anakin could simply kill this Sith or whatever it was, and that they could finally live in peace.

She admired Anakin so much- he was always ready to jump to the next obstacle and keep her and their children safe. He always made sure he was the strong one so that she could worry, he always reassured her even when he was feeling nervous himself, and she loved him for it. She only wished she could appear less frightened, and more confident like him, but she knew that Anakin didn't care. Before the twins were born, she had been just as ready as he had to face difficult situations and fight to the death for what she believed in, but her children gave her someone to worry about other than herself. It was their safety that frightened her, not her own- she knew that they needed her, and their father, and so situations that once she would have looked right in the face now made her want to simply get her children as far away as possible, to safety. Plus, she simply didn't understand the Force- it was so powerful, and it scared her. She had seen a good friend turn completely evil, she had even seen the love of her life almost reach that edge, and the power of it all made her wish she could understand it better. She sighed, calmed herself, and wiped the tears off her face. She turned to continue to search for Obi Wan, wishing she didn't have to but knowing that Anakin was counting on her. But as soon as she turned, she bumped right into someone and nearly fell over.

"Padme?" said a familiar voice.

"Thank the Force," Padme whispered, looking up into the kind eyes of Obi Wan.

"What's wrong?" Obi Wan asked, suddenly on alert, sensing Padme's extreme distress.

"I don't know, Anakin, he said… he went…he…go find him, please," was all she could say.

"Padme what did he say to you?" Obi Wan asked seriously, looking her in the eyes.

"The other Sith," was all she could get out before Obi Wan began running down the hallway Padme had just come from.

"Padme Sabe's in your office with the twins, we thought you would be there. Go to them, and don't leave. Stay there, and make sure you have as many guards as you can get. Delay the Senate meeting and tell everyone in the building to get to safety," He instructed as he ran backwards down the hallway. Padme began to protest, but he cut her off. "I know it's bad to cause a panic, but it will be even worse if anyone is hurt, if he can take hostages, or anything- go!" He yelled, and with that he was gone.

"Sith," Obi Wan muttered to himself, not even realizing the pun. He had expected this to come up, but not so soon. There were always two Sith, but he hadn't expected the apprentice to show himself so soon- however, it did make sense. The Senate knew everything now, there would be no hope for the Sith's operation at all once the Senate voted on how to deal with the problem, and so he had to strike now, even though the odds were extremely against him. Obi Wan could sense that Anakin was ok so far, but he was worried, and struggling.

Obi Wan felt so much empathy for his friend, whom he really saw as a brother, for having had such a difficult week. It had been hard enough for Obi Wan himself, and he had no further attachments like Anakin did. There was only Sabe, and Anakin himself, and both were fully capable of taking care of themselves, Sabe being a trained bodyguard and decoy for high ranking government officials and Anakin being, well, Anakin. He loved them both, but knew how much more difficult it must be to have two… no, three now, he mused, thinking of the unborn child… young and vulnerable, and totally dependent, children to worry about. He knew that Anakin fought so hard every day to keep them safe, and he really admired him for it. Anakin had become so much more responsible and mature… well, sort of…because of his family. Obi Wan though fondly of the entire family, and they of him, as much as they all teased each other incessantly, and he would have been devastated for any of them to get hurt.

As he followed Anakin's Force signature, growing increasingly stressed, Obi Wan thoughts turned somewhat randomly to the time that Anakin had risked his life to save his former Master by jumping in front of the Sith lightning. That had been beyond the call of duty, and beyond even their friendship, and he hadn't yet been able to properly return the favor, though, of course, he hoped that Anakin's life would never be in jeopardy. But it was with that thought on his mind that he approached the door through which he knew he would find a terrible sight. Taking a deep breath, he pushed the door in with his foot, light saber raised, ready to help Anakin at all costs in finally defeating what he prayed was the last of the Sith.

……………………………

"Chancellor, what's happened?" Asked the reporters, as she was visibly upset.

"I-" She stopped, not wanting to say anything but knowing that Obi Wan had instructed her to. "I can't say anything, just… get somewhere safe."

"What? What's going on?" They yelled anxiously, looking around. Just as she had predicted the whole group was already starting to panic.

"Where is your husband?" Asked one of the reporters, cleverly realizing that something Jedi-like must be going on.

"He's…he and Obi Wan Kenobi have sensed we are in danger, and they are trying to find out what's going on. Master Kenobi has instructed me to warn everyone, especially the Senators…" The politician in her cursed herself for this, it was the exact opposite of proper protocol in an emergency situation, but Obi Wan was right- no one's life was worth risking, because it would only aid the Sith.

"Why? What's happened?"  
"I'm sorry, I can't say any more at this time," she said firmly, turning away as the barrage of reporters continued to harass her.

Padme headed for her office, taking out a comlink to contact the Senate's head of security right away.

"This is Chancellor Skywalker, listen…Masters Skywalker and Kenobi have instructed me to put the building on alert, please get as much security as possible, and send the guards and anyone unsure of where to go up to my office."

"Yes, m'lady," came the response, and Padme hurried toward her office, completely confused and tired of the whole situation. Finally, she burst in the familiar doors, the tears now falling freely as Sabe and her children looked up, confused.

"What's wrong Padme?" Sabe asked worriedly, immediately drawing her into a hug. The twins just looked up at her, scared, unsure for the first time in their lives of what to say.

"Sabe, theres-" Padme turned to her children's scared eyes, and realized she didn't want to worry them. She turned Sabe away, and whispered to her. "Anakin and Obi Wan think the other Sith is here, they're fighting it now…"

"Oh Force," Sabe sighed; now sharing Padme's nervous gaze. "Will they be alright?"

"Yes, yes, I'm sure they will, don't worry," Padme said, though she didn't know why. She was just as worried as Sabe. "Obi Wan told me to come here, and that we should stay here. Don't worry, there's a lot of security in the temple."

"Mommy?" Came a small, timid, voice.

"Yes, hello my darlings," Padme said lovingly, turning to them and managing a smile.

"What's wrong?" Leia asked sadly, she and Luke sensing the distress of the adults in the room.

Padme couldn't bear to see her children worried, but she knew there was nothing she could do or say to help- they could sense it through the Force. It was at this moment that she realized that she would never be able to do a mother's main job- comfort her children in the eyes of tragedy or sadness. They would always know the feelings of those around them, and she would never be able to make it better when people were upset. It broke her heart, and she began to cry again, thinking what an awful mother it made her.

"What is it?" Sabe asked, worriedly, and Padme once again turned her around, timidly explaining herself. "No," Sabe shook her head. "No, you're a wonderful mother, the best, I promise. Just because they can sense it doesn't mean they won't still feel comforted by you. Even adults, when they know everything is wrong, still feel better to have someone tell them everything will be all right," Sabe smiled, giving Padme a huge.

"Thanks," Padme smiled half-heartedly. Sabe's argument did make sense, but she still felt awful. "Daddy and Master Obi Wan are just doing more to help defend us," Padme explained to the twins. "And I'm a little worried, but they will be fine, I promise. And so will you."  
Leia and Luke nodded, only pretending to understand, and just looked at each other worriedly. However, as most four year olds would, they soon grew bored and forgot their worries. Looking at each other mischievously, they turned sweetly towards their mother.

"I learned a trick, wanna see?" Luke asked innocently, though Padme could see through it.

"What is it?" She asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow at Luke.

"Hm, you'll just have to wait and see!" He said excitedly, as Leia giggled.

"Um, I don't, um…" Padme mumbled.

"Lukey, what are you going to do?" Leia asked.

"Well, I'm… _you_ know," Luke said to her secretively.

"Oh, yes. _I_ know," Leia nodded proudly at her mother.

"I-" Padme protested.

"You don't know," Luke informed her, giggling. "Please can I?"  
"Oh all right," Padme conceded, against her better judgment. What else would they do while they waited, anyway?

……………………….

"Obi Wan, oh thank the Force," Anakin said breathlessly, deeply into a battle with a cloaked Sith.

"Who is it?" Obi Wan asked, joining in and helping Anakin as soon as he saw the opportunity.

"I don't know, hasn't said a word," Anakin told him. It was obvious that Anakin was growing increasingly frustrated with the situation. "But listen, you need to go to Padme and Sabe and the children, because… well, look," Anakin said angrily, his face as if he had just tasted something bitter.

Obi Wan turned around, and saw the bodies of at least twenty security guards piled in a corner. "Oh no," was all he could say, feeling momentarily ill. "How much security do they have?"

"Way more than this, but Obi Wan," Anakin said pleadingly, sadness and fear evident in his eyes. "These are the Chancellor's bodyguards, see the insignia on their shoulder?"

Obi Wan stared at Anakin, stunned. Anakin had known this the whole time, yet had kept fighting- years ago he would have rushed directly to Padme, not processing in his brain that the threat was there with him, and that she was most likely safe even without the guard. But, Anakin really had matured as a Jedi- Obi Wan was proud of him, especially of this decision.

"Are you sure you're ok here?" Obi Wan wondered, not sure himself if Anakin could defeat him alone.

"Enough to hold him off, call the council, get help," Anakin added, "Get some protection for them, then come back and help me."

"Ok," Obi Wan agreed, skillfully pulling out of the fight, the Sith still completely silent in his ominous black hood through which they couldn't even see his eyes.

"Who knows, maybe he doesn't speak Basic," Anakin joked, and Obi Wan, ever appreciative of Anakin's ability to make stupid jokes even in the most dire situations, laughed.


	24. Chapter 24

**Ch. 24**

**Hi!** Again, sorry it's been so long… I really do apologize but I've been busy, I hope some people still remember this story!

As Anakin continued to battle the mysterious Sith, he grew increasingly annoyed at his opponent's silence. At least normally he had running dialogue with people he was fighting, or at least knew who they were and could try to manipulate them, but in this instance it was truly just a physical fight, and the fight was a stalemate. All Anakin could think about was how ironic it was that he was actually growing _bored_ in a battle with a Sith Lord. He hoped that Obi Wan would soon be back with reinforcements to end this battle once and for all- Anakin wanted to get back to Padme and his children.

"Once the rest of the Jedi get here," Anakin said, though he knew he would get no response. "You _will_ talk."

As Anakin had predicted, his opponent said nothing, but each continued to expertly block the other's blows.

…………………………………………..

"I can't believe you actually fell for that," Sabe teased Padme, "it's one of the oldest tricks…"

"I don't expect my four year olds to be playing practical jokes on me," Padme countered angrily, trying to wash off her face. Luke had convinced her to try to roll a coin down the middle of her forehead- what she didn't know was he had drawn on the coin with ink, so that it left a line down the middle of her face. "This is not working!" Padme said helplessly, the cloth she had been using to wipe her face had done nothing at all.

Luke and Leia sat giggling helplessly in the corner, so hysterical they could hardly even move. They lay on the floor laughing whole-heartedly at their mother, and also at their cleverness.

"Don't think you got away with this," Padme said angrily, only eliciting more laughter from her children. "It isn't funny!" She yelled, with no effect.

"It is… it is kind of funny," Sabe said timidly, receiving a sharp look from Padme. "Come on, Padme, they're children, they're going to do far worse things to you in your life, this is just a joke!"

"Sabe, if they're doing this to me at four, what are they going to be doing to me at eight? And twelve? And sixteen? I don't even want to know…" Padme muttered dejectedly.

Sabe smiled, "They love you, Padme, and their father loves you, and they always will. Don't worry."  
"It was their _loving_ father that probably taught them this trick," Padme grumbled, though the corner of her mouth couldn't help but begin to smile.

"I saw that!" Sabe said enthusiastically, and Padme laughed.

Padme walked over to her children, standing over them with her hands on her hips as they continued to giggle. She couldn't help but feel embarrassed that her four year olds had tricked her, and she just knew Anakin had had something to do with it…. What other Chancellor, in the thousand years of the Republic, would have ended up with a line of ink down the middle of his or her face during a session of Senate? Only one with Skywalkers in the family…and yet, Padme couldn't help but think of the good side to having Skywalkers in the family- maybe this craziness was what she truly loved about them.

"I can't believe you two," she said sternly, kneeling next to them. "This was very disrespectful."

"We're…we're sorry, mom," Luke apologized, gasping for air in between his giggles.

"Your face looks like a butt," Leia said matter-of-factly, sitting up and facing her mother.

Padme glared at her daughter, and neither blinked. However, Padme could feel herself beginning to laugh. 'Don't laugh,' she willed herself. 'Don't, then they'll win.'

"We know you think it's funny," Luke informed her. "We can feel it." He waved his arms around as he said this as if it was some sort of supernatural phenomenon… 'well, it sort of is,' Padme mused.

"We should probably go find a 'fresher," Sabe decided. "That's the only way we'll be able to get that off your face."

"I am _not_ walking through the halls like this," Padme said, horrified. "There are reporters everywhere, not to mention Obi Wan instructed us to stay right here. Sabe," she said, lowering her voice and getting closer to her friend, "if there really is a Sith Lord here, I don't think we should leave the room, not with them."

"Padme, if he's here, Obi Wan and Anakin are fighting him," Sabe realized wisely. "I doubt he has any accomplices, from what you all tell me Anakin and Obi Wan defeated them all…"

Padme sighed. She didn't want to leave, but at the same time she was not happy that every time she turned to her children they howled with laughter. "All right," she consented. "Let's go, but we have to stick together."

With that, Padme, Sabe, Leia and Luke left Padme's office and headed to the nearest 'fresher to try to wipe the ink line off of the Chancellor's face.

……………………

"Finally," Obi Wan said aloud to himself, as he reached the door to the Chancellor's office. After braving the barrage of reporters, all in a panic because of Padme's words, Obi Wan had also had to make his way through hoards of Senators all begging him to tell them what was going on. He had simply advised everyone to remain together, that the threat was being dealt with… 'Whatever that really means,' he thought to himself. He didn't know if Anakin and he could handle this alone, but he couldn't risk causing widespread panic.

"Padme!" He said loudly, knocking on the door to the room. Silence. "Oh, please, no," he said, fearing that they had somehow already been harmed. "Chancellor!" He yelled, banging on the door. With still no response, he used the Force to manipulate the lock, and, taking a deep breath, opened the door, bracing himself to see a terrible sight.

But instead, he saw nothing. "Thank the Force," he said out loud. If he had lost any of them, Sabe or Padme or the twins, he didn't know if he even would have been able to think clearly, to contact the Council and get help- they truly were all his family…but, now they weren't here, and it was a most crucial time as well.

'Where could they have gone?' He wondered, he had instructed Padme to keep them all in that room. Of course, he knew that that group of four people was not to be trusted to follow specific directions. All were far to stubborn and impulsive, as well as very strong-willed; these traits served them well most of the time, as was demonstrated by all of their successes, but today was not the day for heroics or stubbornness.

Obi Wan couldn't help but laugh at himself, noticing how old and preacher-like his thoughts sounded. Chuckling, he made a thorough check of the Chancellor's office and headed down the hall to find his ridiculous friends.

……………………..

Padme, Sabe, and the twins were heading towards the 'fresher when suddenly Padme stopped short, staring ahead of her intently.

"What is it?" Sabe asked nervously, looking around her and preparing, if necessary, to perform what used to be her duty in protecting Padme.

"Sola?" Padme blurted incredulously, as her sister turned around and stared at her.

"Padme!" Sola said cheerfully. "I've been looking for you everywhere! Hi, Sabe, it's wonderful to see you again."

Sabe breathed a sigh of relief, shaking her head amusedly. The Naberries certainly never won any prizes for being predictable. "Hello, Sola," she greeted happily.

"What are you doing here?" Padme asked, still staring in shock at her sister.

"Don't I get a hug?" Sola asked amusedly, kissing her sister's cheek as Padme just stood there.

"Of course, I…what… what are you doing here?" Padme asked again, still unable to believe it.

"Well, certainly you remember that today is your birthday?" Sola teased. "Not that I wouldn't put it past you to forget, but I know your loving husband had you up early for some kind of wonderful celebration." Sola knew Anakin, and she knew that he would never forget Padme's birthday for any reason in the universe.

"You came for my birthday," Padme stated. Though her actions seemed very strange to Sola, Sabe understood- Padme hadn't even told her family about the week she had spent being kidnapped. They had no idea what the Skywalkers had been through, or that they had just gotten back- that, though Anakin _had_ indeed had a birthday celebration for Padme, it had been completely last minute. And most importantly, they had no idea that there was Sith in the Senate building right now. So, while her sister coming to visit on her birthday would be normal at any other time, it seemed very strange on that day in particular.

"Mom and dad are here too, and Darred and the girls! I- Padme, what's wrong?" Sola asked, sensing Padme's mixed emotions. Sola looked at Sabe for an explanation. Padme had always been somewhat difficult to figure out, especially when she was stressed out, so Sola was used to having to look somewhere else for an explanation. It was ironic- for a successful politician, Padme was terrible at explaining things clearly to her family.

"There's… a lot Padme needs to tell you about the past week," Sabe said, and Sola nodded understandingly. Crazy things were always going on with Padme's life as Chancellor, especially with these twins.

"Sola, I'm really glad to see you," Padme said warmly, hugging her sister and coming out of her initial state of shock.

"Where are my niece and nephew?" Sola asked cheerfully, assuming they were with Anakin.

"Sith, not again!" Padme cursed sadly. She was really starting to feel guilty about always losing her children- she and Anakin were going to have to work on responsibility issues, especially with the new baby.

"And, as a good big sister I waited until you recovered mentally a little bit before I asked, but, what in Sith's name is on your face?"

……………………………….

"Good news, this will be, for the Chancellor," Yoda said to Mace, who nodded as the two Jedi Masters entered the Senate building. They had just received word from one of the Jedi on Kashyyyk that Han Solo and Chewbacca had agreed to come back to Coruscant, at least for a while, so that the Chancellor could thank them for their bravery and try to help them. They would be arriving in just an hour, and so, though Yoda and Mace had tried to wait until the Senate hearing was over, they knew that they had to inform the Chancellor now. They had all assumed the Skywalkers would be able to take Solo and the Wookie as their guests- and so Padme had to have at least some notice.

"I feel increasingly bad that we just assumed Anakin and Padme could have the two stay with them," Mace said hesitantly, and Yoda nodded.

"Impetuous, perhaps, our decision was," he agreed.

"Oh well," Mace shrugged. "I suppose there's nothing we can do about it now." No one else had any room for the guests, and there were no extra rooms at the temple.

"A big apartment, they have," Yoda tried to support the decision. Plus, he had always been a little jealous of Padme's nice apartment, though he knew it wasn't a good trait for a Jedi. For once, Yoda thought, it might be nice to sleep on something other than a Jedi cot…

……………………………

"Luke? Leia?" Obi Wan asked, as he saw to small figures running through the Senate café with ice cream cones. The Senators and reporters in the room were sitting at tables, speaking nervously in hushed voices, wondering what was going on. As Obi Wan entered the room, they all looked up, trying to ask him questions, but thankfully the ice cream covered children darted out of the room and Obi Wan, with the excuse that he had to follow them, was able to make his escape.

"Leia! No running in the halls," Obi Wan reprimanded, as he grabbed the little girl's cloak to stop her. But suddenly, he realized that what he had grabbed did not feel like the coarse Jedi cloak that Padawans wore, but something softer, like a silky dress. And, as he looked in to the face of the little girl he had assumed was Leia, another pair of brown eyes stared back at him, looking at him curiously. Not to mention, the girl was at least a foot taller than Leia, if not more. "Um, I'm sorry…" Obi Wan said awkwardly, completely confused. "I thought you were-"

"Leia, I know," Pooja answered, rolling her eyes. "People confuse us all the time, even though I'm three years older. I'm pretty small for my age, but I'm not that small, jeez. Plus, Leia's _waaay_ messier, think about it, if she had been eating this ice cream cone, would the drips have been contained to just her hands?"

"No, they would be all over her cloak," Obi Wan agreed, shaking his head as if his brain wasn't working right. Had he really just received a lesson in ratiocination, and important Jedi ability, from an eight year old? And she really, _really_ did look like Leia, and what's more, she knew her…she knew her well…

"Could you let go of me please?" The little girl asked politely. "I'm sorry, but my sister ran off and I'd better find her, our parents won't be too happy with us, they told us to stay in the café. You'd think she'd be the responsible one, she's 10 now, but no, I have to be in charge of the both of us."

"Oh, yes, of course," Obi Wan said, horrified that he had kept his grip on the little girl's dress. "I know you have to find your sister," he said, still completely confused, "but if I may ask, how do you… know… Leia?"

"She's my cousin, of course," Pooja said, and with that, she ran off.

Shaking his head in complete confusion, Obi Wan decided he could only continue his search for Sabe, Padme, and the twins. As he left the cafeteria and went back into the entrance hall of the Senate, he saw Mace and Yoda, and for some reason which he could never figure out after the fact, he immediately hid behind a pillar. His instinct was that he should have called the council right away, and that they would be mad he hadn't. But what he was thinking hiding childishly behind a pillar from two Jedi Masters was completely lost to him. They could, of course, sense his presence.

"Master Kenobi, I know we aren't the most exciting people in the world, but there's really no need to try so hard toavoid just a simple hello," Mace said, fully enjoying Obi Wan's deep embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, it's just… I don't know what I was thinking, I was just afraid…Well I was supposed to call you right away, and I forgot. The Sith Lord is here, Anakin's fighting him, he needs you. Control room A, please, go to him. I need to find the Chancellor and the twins and get them to safety-"

"The Sith Lord! How can that be?" Mace asked, horrified.

"Afraid this moment would come, I was," Yoda said sadly. "But Hopefully, after today, fulfilled the prophecy will be."  
Obi Wan and Mace nodded, and then Mace and Yoda began to hurry towards control room A.

"Wait," Obi Wan said, realizing something. "Definitely go to Anakin but… there's something else weird going on here, somehow, more of Anakin and Padme's family is here…"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I thought I found Leia, but it was a girl who looked a lot like her, and she said they were cousins…I just think we'd better try to keep them out of the loop, until Padme tells them herself, so if you find any more Naberries about, maybe just try to pretend everything's all right."

"Agree with you, I do," Yoda nodded. "Strange, this day has been."

"By the way, Han Solo and the Wookie are scheduled to arrive in about an hour," Mace told Obi Wan, who just stared at him, wide eyed.

"What? Why didn't anyone tell us?" Obi Wan asked. "Where are they going to stay?"

"We kind of hoped they could stay with Anakin."

"Well, enjoy bringing that to his attention," Obi Wan laughed, and Mace and Yoda eyed each other apprehensively.

"We didn't have a lot of warning," Mace defended his and Yoda's position on the matter, and Obi Wan just laughed good-naturedly. Mace turnedso that he was adressingboth Yoda and Obi Wan."But- where should we tell the transport to take them, when they arrive? What with this issue going on and all…"

"I suppose just bring them here," Obi Wan decided. "Everyone else in the galaxy is here anyway. It's just one big happy birthday party for Padme."

With that, Yoda and Mace headed towards control room A to aid Anakin in finally defeating the last of the Sith, while Obi Wan went to find Padme.

'This day gets stranger around every corner,' Obi Wan laughed to himself, and, right on cue, he rounded a corner to find Luke and Leia Skywalker peering down at him through a missing panel in the ceiling, perched in a ventilation shaft with soot on their faces, whispering intently to each other.


	25. Chapter 25

**Ch. 25**

"A-hem," Obi Wan cleared his throat loudly, staring directly at the Skywalker twins above him. Immediately, they froze, staring at each other guiltily with wide eyes. Then, they each began to slowly back away from each other into the recesses of the ceiling, gradually disappearing from view.

"I already saw you," Obi Wan informed them sternly, smiling despite himself. "There's no use hiding now. You may as well just tell me what you were up to."

Slowly, a small, soot covered face peered timidly out at him, the bright blue eyes informing him that it was Luke. He looked so much like a young Anakin in that instant Obi Wan actually had to blink to remind himself who he was looking at. The mischievous face had been passed directly to Luke, and the eyes that stared out at Obi Wan took the Jedi Master back twenty years to when he had just taken Anakin as his Padawan. And now, here he was, staring at Anakin's _son_. It still amazed him that his former Padawan was married and had children… And yet, Obi wan suddenly realized, Luke was no longer just Anakin's son, but he was also Obi Wan's Padawan… and that made Obi wan responsible. He had considered just leaving them, but now he realized it was his duty to get them down, or at least Luke…and in that moment it hit Obi Wan what he was in for these next fifteen or so years. At least he already had twenty years of dealing with Anakin to prepare him. But, he knew it was worth it- the friendship he now had with Anakin was worth the years of pranks and disobedience, and really it was those qualities that had kept the years interesting.

"Hello Luke," Obi Wan said kindly. "I think it's time for you and Leia to come down."

Luke looked across at Leia, still hiding from Obi Wan, who shook her head slowly, backing further into the ceiling. Obi Wan saw Luke peer down at him again nervously, then retreat back into the ceiling out of view.

"Luke Skywalker, get down from there now!" Obi Wan said more sternly. "You are going to have to start following my directions if you want to be my Padawan." Inside his head, Obi Wan laughed. Anakin still hadn't started following his directions.

"We… we probably shouldn't come down," Leia said timidly. "I think it wouldn't be a good idea."

"And why is that Leia?" Obi Wan asked tiredly.

"Because we're doing something important," she answered.

"Yes, yes it's important," Luke agreed, nodding at her.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it's not as important as what I need you to do," Obi Wan told them, trying to coax them out. "You won't be in trouble, I promise. I need you to stay with me, for safety. And where is your mother?"

"Well, we had to leave her a while ago," Leia informed him.

"And why is that?"

"Well, she had to get the line off her face, and then Aunt Sola was there, and we didn't want to sit around while mommy and Aunt Sola and Sabe talked for hours about all that stupid stuff girls always talk about," Luke informed his Master solemnly.

"Hey!" Interjected Leia, as Obi Wan just shook his head, laughing. "I'm a girl too, nerfherder."

"Yeah but you're just little," Luke explained patiently. "You're still ok to hang out with."

"Yeah, I am," Leia agreed. "But, well, when am I not ok to hang out with?"

"I don't know, when you're like a teenager maybe?" Luke surmised thoughtfully.

"Well what am I supposed to do then?" Leia asked, pouting.

"I don't know, Leia, ok, don't be such a laser brain," Luke rolled his eyes at her.

Leia stuck her tongue out at him, as both twins crossed their arms and pouted at each other. Obi Wan continued to laugh- if he had had trouble believing before that Anakin actually had children, this behavior undoubtedly proved that Anakin was the father of these children.

"Well I'm sorry to tell you both but we have to go find your mother now," Obi Wan instructed, and they both knew now that there was no arguing. "Now come down from there."

"Ok, fine Master but we need some help," Luke conceded.

"No you don't, Luke, don't give me that, you're Jedi, you could jump down from something triple this height," Obi Wan rolled his eyes. Grumbling, Luke and Leia hopped down from the ceiling, and Obi Wan grabbed each of their arms and led them down the hallway.

"Just out of curiosity," Obi Wan began, immediately doubting whether he wanted to actually know, "what _were_ you doing?"

"Searching for Siths!" Leia announced proudly, as Luke nodded vigorously at her side.

"Why did you- you know what, never mind." Obi Wan shook his head, thoroughly confused as to where these children got their ideas, or how, for that matter, they always managed to carry them out.

…………………………..

"Mom and Dad are here too?" Padme asked breathlessly, as she, Sola, and Sabe rushed through the building trying to find the twins. They had successfully gotten the ink off of Padme's face, and the top priority for Padme and Sabe now was to get everyone to safety. "And your family?"

"Yes, everyone came to celebrate your birthday," Sola explained again. "We had contacted Anakin, but apparently he forgot, or… I don't really know what happened, actually, all I know is we couldn't contact him for the past few days, maybe a week, to confirm when we were coming- so we decided to come anyway, and crash whatever special surprise he had planned that he obviously didn't want us coming too," she laughed.

"No, no, Sola it's not that it's… listen to me," Padme said, taking her sister by the arm as Sabe put a reassuring hand on Padme's shoulder. "There's no easy way to tell you this so I'm just going to tell you everything and you can react after you hear it all. A couple of days ago, Luke and Leia were kidnapped, and when Anakin and I tried to help them we were too-"

"What! Padme, what are you talking about, are you all right?" Sola asked worriedly. This was what she didn't understand about her sister- Padme was so willing to put herself in danger to serve her people, to put herself at the center of everything and to be the target of all kinds of horrible threats. Padme was so unlike the rest of the family, who wanted to just be at peace, and together, and safe- she loved her sister and Anakin and the children, but their life was so different from hers, and their parents- and it was getting even harder to deal with Padme's life constantly in the headlines, and always threatened. It broke Sola's heart to see her little sister with so much attention, involved in so many battles (though in the past few years there hadn't been any), in so much danger- but she stood by her, always, and tried to do everything she could for her. And it was obvious that this was one of those times when she would have to simply help Padme in any way possible, whether she understood her or not. A tear fell down Sola's cheek as she hugged Padme.

"We're all right now, but Sola, it was Palpatine who took them- he was still alive, and-"

"What? Padme Palpatine was killed years ago, you told me so yourself!" Sola protested, not wanting to believe it.

"That's what we all thought, but somehow, he got away. Anyway, he is dead now, Anakin killed him, and we escaped, and I'll tell you more later I promise. But right now, we're all in danger, Palpatine's apprentice is here and Anakin's fighting him right now. We have to get to safety," Padme stared at her sister seriously, hoping she understood the gravity of the situation.

"I'll never understand you Padme," Sola shook her head, hugging her sister. "How you can sit here so calmly when your husband is fighting a Sith and your children are in danger, how do you do it?"

"It is difficult for me, Sola, I worry about them constantly. But I learn to put that aside and think about the task at hand, which is getting help to Anakin and getting my children to safety. I put the emotions behind be, and you have to too. In a family full of Jedi, it gets easier," Padme smiled ruefully. "Now, we have to find everyone and get them to safety."

"Sabe you knew about all this?" Sola asked.

"Yes, Obi Wan was with them at the time, he told me about it and I helped Padme prepare this speech today," Sabe replied.

"Obi Wan?" Sola asked, confused. "Anakin's old Master?"

"Yes, you met him, Sola," Padme nodded. "Last summer when we all visited Naboo, he came with us, do you remember?"

"Yes," Sola nodded. "Please tell me he's all right, too."

"Of course, he and Anakin basically saved all of us," Padme smiled. "Now, let's go find him, he probably has found my twins wrecking havoc somewhere around here."

Suddenly, a laser blast hit the wall right in between Padme and Sabe.

"What's going on?" Sola asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Padme replied honestly, sounding nervous herself.

"M'lady, let me protect you," Sabe implored her friend, "the Senate needs you."

"You don't work for me anymore, Sabe," Padme said firmly. "And I won't have you risking your own life for mine anymore. We will do this together."

"All right," Sabe conceded, as she and Padme peered cautiously around the corner, then whipped their heads back to where they were.

"You saw him too?" Padme asked breathlessly.

"Yes, but I couldn't see his face because of his black cloak," Sabe responded.

"He's with the Sith- but he's much bigger than the others we saw… there must have been older ones, too," Padme deduced. "Better trained."

"Yes, but still not perfectly- he missed you, so obviously his aim is off," Sabe said, examining the hole in the wall.

"Well, _mine_ isn't," Padme stated confidently, as she pulled out her blaster and killed him with a perfect hit. "Come on, we don't have much time here."

"Padme!" Sola muttered, still shocked. "You killed him."

"Sola, listen to me," Padme said softly, looking at her sister reassuringly. "These are bad people, they are working to destroy the democracy we have worked so hard to create. These are the same kind of people who kidnapped me and my children; they work for the man who is fighting my husband to the death right now. And we need to get ourselves and our families to safety, ok?"

"I… I know," Sola nodded, still shaking- she had never been in a battle before, and it was difficult to see her sister in such a position- it was a different Padme than she had ever seen before. "I just can't believe that your life is like this, that you have to-"

"Sola, now is not the time, we have to get out of here," Padme said sternly, as she pulled Sola along with her. Sabe also pulled out her gun and they ran down the hall, covering each other. When they reached the man Padme had shot, she knelt down to check his pulse. "He's dead," she confirmed, picking up his gun. "Sola, can you use this?"

"I don't know," Sola said nervously, eyeing the gun.

"Just hold it, and use it to protect yourself, ok?" Padme instructed. "We don't know how many more of them there are."

Sola nodded, a little more confidently, and took the gun. Padme turned the next corner, first checking to make sure the hallway was clear, and motioned for them to follow her. Suddenly, the sound of laser blasts rang out from down the next hallway, and Sabe pushed Padme and Sola up against the wall with her.

"How many do you think there are?" Padme asked sharply, trying to weigh the danger of the situation.

"At least ten," Sabe decided, and Padme nodded in agreement. "What should we do?"

"Go back, we don't even know where the people we're looking for are," Padme thought sharply. "So it really doesn't matter which way we go, if they were back there, then… well…"

They all looked at each other, knowing that the prospect wasn't good. They began to move back the way they had come, when suddenly, Padme stopped short.

"Wait," Padme held up her hand, turning back around towards the sounds of the blasts.

"What is it?" Sola asked, worried for the safety of her family.

"It's ok, we can go back there, in fact we should," Padme said confidently, turning back.

"What?" Sabe asked, knowing Padme had heard something that caused this decision.

"Light sabers," Padme said, and soon both Sola and Sabe could also hear the distinct swoosh sound of light sabers blocking the laser blasts. "They might need our help."

They ran around the corner as quickly as they could, only to find Obi Wan standing in front of Luke and Leia, all three of them with raised light sabers deflecting blasts. They stood obediently behind him, so that he was the direct target, but their training sabers helped considerably in deflecting the blasts of the ten or so soldiers fighting against them. Obi Wan fought amazingly, actually winning this battle against the well trained soldiers as he expertly blocked their blasts.

"Oh Force," Padme exclaimed, putting her hand over her mouth at the sight of her babies fighting.

"Padme, thank goodness," Obi Wan said quickly. "I tried to keep them safe but… Padme we became surrounded, we had to-"

"It's ok, I know, I understand," Padme said quickly, shooting at the enemy to try to free them.

"The council has been notified, help is on the way," Obi Wan assured them. "I can handle this lot but there's more of them." In perfect timing, Obi Wan flipped away from Luke and Leia and killed the remaining two soldiers in midair. Breathlessly he rushed to Padme, Luke and Leia following obediently behind.

Padme immediately knelt down to embrace her children. "Are you all right, angels? I know it was scary, but you're ok now," she assured them, borrowing Anakin's nickname as she had started to do more and more.

"Mommy we fought in a battle!" They exclaimed loudly and excitedly, and Padme suddenly wondered why she had been worried about them being afraid. "Master Obi Wan says we did really good!"

"Well," Padme corrected, smiling at her children. "You did do really well, I'm just so glad you're all right."

"How are you?" Obi Wan asked Sabe, giving her a quick peck on the lips.

"We're all fine, but we have to find the rest of their family, if there really are more of these soldiers here," Sabe reminded him.

"My mother and father, as well as my husband and children are here," Sola told Obi Wan calmly, her eyes begging him to keep them safe.

"I know, I think they're probably all right though," Obi Wan assured all of them. "They are probably in a more public area, I think these troops are trying to get to their Master, and he's even further away from the main area, in a very remote location with Ana- um… anyway we should," he stumbled looking at Padme who stared right back at him.

"It's ok, Obi Wan," she said sadly. "I know he's fighting him…Is anyone helping him yet?" She asked, suddenly letting her worry about Anakin come to the forefront. She squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to hold back the tears that she wanted to much to shed.

"Yoda and Mace are in the building," Obi Wan said kindly. "But I don't know if they've found him yet…it's going to be ok, Padme, he's much stronger than this one, I promise. If he defeated Sidious, he can defeat this one."

Padme took a deep breath. "I want to go find him."

"There's nothing you can do," Obi Wan warned her. "It would be better to find your family…"

"No. You are going to take me to him. Sabe and Sola will get them, and protect them. You said the council knows- that means more Jedi will be here soon to keep them safe. I want you with Anakin; you're the only other person I trust enough to help him," Padme said firmly.

"All right," Obi Wan conceded reluctantly. He knew at this point there was no more arguing with the Chancellor. "Sabe, you can handle them, right?"

"We'll be fine," Sabe assured him.

"We'll protect them Obi- I mean, _Master_," Luke said proudly, bowing elaborately.

"You fought well, my young Padawan," Obi Wan said fondly, smiling at Luke. "I think I'll be able to turn you into a fine Jedi Knight, maybe even better than your father."  
Luke beamed proudly, but Leia pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What about me?" She demanded.

"Well, you fought very well too, Leia," Obi Wan said warmly. "But it's up to your father to train you. We'll see," he laughed, as Leia and Luke smiled.

"All right, you four head to the main entrance and as soon as the Jedi get here make sure to send them to Control Room A- Sabe you'd better give them directions because I'm pretty sure Yoda and Mace got lost. Sola I want you to tell any Senate security that you see that you are the Chancellor's sister and that the rest of her family needs protection- get as much security as you can to the main entrance and also instruct anyone you see to go there, and hopefully everyone will be safe. And we'll…go help Anakin," Obi Wan instructed. He gave Sabe one last hug before they left, and Padme hugged Sola tightly, reassuring her that it would be ok.

"Bye mommy!" The twins yelled, running down the hall, as Sola and Sabe followed.

"I didn't want to start this argument again in front of your sister and Sabe, but for the record, Chancellor, I _don't_ think this is a good idea," Obi Wan said, slightly angry.

"Why did you concede then," Padme challenged fiercely. Neither was actually mad at the other, but both knew they each had a very specific way of handling situations, and they didn't usually agree. This argument between them happened often in crisis situations, but it was normally solved easily, because one had obvious jurisdiction depending on the kind of situation they were in. However, here, Obi Wan knew that Padme felt it was her call, because they were in the Senate, and Padme knew that Obi Wan felt it was his call, because they were dealing with a Sith.

"I gave in because I knew you would follow me no matter what," he told her, and she nodded.

"Look, I'm not going to interfere, but I have to know he's all right," Padme said firmly, looking straight into Obi Wan's eyes. "I can help!"

"I really don't think you can- not that you aren't a great asset in most situations, but this is a Sith Lord!"

"I'll do what I can, I promise you that I won't be a problem," Padme countered ardently.

"That's not what I'm worried about…I don't want you to have to see something that might be too difficult for you," Obi Wan said sternly, and Padme looked away angrily, even though she knew he had her best interests at heart.

"Look, I've seen him in difficult situations before… I can deal with Anakin being hurt, I won't make it a problem," she assured him.

"That's not it," Obi Wan said warily. "Padme, this situation is… slightly different than anything you've seen us deal with before. I know you can deal with us killing our opponents but…Padme this calls for a different, well, protocol…" He looked at her intensely, gauging whether she really could deal with this or not.

For once, she stopped short, and looked at him more timidly. "What do you mean?" She asked hesitantly, looking at the ground.

"In this case, Padme, we need information," Obi Wan began cautiously. "In fact, we need it _for_ you, so you can figure this out…"

"I know," Padme said meekly, looking back up at Obi Wan. "We have to know how Sidious escaped, and if there are any more followers, and where they-"

"Precisely," Obi Wan nodded, cutting her off. "But there are only certain ways of getting information from an enemy, especially a Sith…"

"What do you mean?" Padme asked quietly, though she thought she knew.

"I know you've seen Anakin kill before Padme, but this will be worse," Obi Wan told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know if you can deal with it, and frankly I don't think Anakin will be able to do it with you there. He would hate me for bringing you, he wouldn't want you to see him like that, and I frankly don't want you there either."

"Just let me help you gain control of him," Padme agreed, "let me know Anakin and you are safe, and I will leave."

Obi Wan took a deep breath. "All right," he nodded. "And don't worry, we're going to have this finished as quickly and easily as possible… Let's go." He turned to walk off, but she put her hand on his arm to stop him.

"Obi Wan," she said reluctantly, looking up at him. "You were right this time." She frowned and walked on ahead, as Obi Wan lit up, pumping his fist in the air proudly

"What?" She asked, looking back.

"Nothing, nothing," the Jedi Master covered, as he walked on behind her.


	26. Chapter 26

**Ch. 26**

**Hi! **Sorry again for the longish wait between chapters, I really do apologize… well, this is the number of chapters with which I ended No Boundaries, obviously not gonna happen quite yet here. I kind of wrote myself into a much longer story than I intended, but I'm glad that you're still enjoying- thanks as always for the wonderful reviews and stick with me a little longer while I finish this one up, then maybe continue on to the sequel, which I think would be fun... Enjoy!

Padme and Obi Wan hurried down the corridors of the Senate, quickly leaving the colorful and ornate main halls and navigating through the dim grey passages in the basement of the building, the places that Senators and visitors rarely saw. Down in this more dismal area lay the security offices, the control rooms, and the maintenance areas, as well as detainment cells for political criminals who had been convicted at the Senate. In fact, they were eerily close to the same cell in which Palpatine had been kept immediately following his arrest, until they had been able to move him to a more secure location. As they inched on, Padme's courage began to dwindle. The dark cold of these cellars made her feel more uncomfortable than it normally would have- her thoughts had turned to Obi Wan's words of warning, and she was losing her nerve, no longer so sure she wanted to see Anakin fighting at all, and certain she wouldn't be able to handle he and Obi Wan trying to extract information from the Sith. Suddenly, Obi Wan halted and Padme realized that they were outside of Control Room A. Her breath caught in her throat as she could hear light sabers buzzing inside, and she knew that Obi Wan could sense her trepidation.

"Obi Wan," she said quietly. "Maybe I don't want to-"

"Chancellor, this was your idea," Obi Wan said strictly but softly, "and it is your decision whether or not you come with me. But I have to go and help your husband, and I don't have time to stand here with you and help you weigh your conscience about it." Obi Wan looked at her more warmly now. "Otherwise, you know I would, Padme," he said, his eyes sad for her, and with that he raised his light saber and burst through the door.

Padme had just enough time to catch a glimpse of Anakin's profile, green light saber raised in the air, before the door swung closed again. Biting her lip she sunk against the wall, wanting to go in but not wanting to face what was in there. She wanted to help, but at the same time she worried what Anakin's reaction would be were she to go in- Obi Wan was right, he wouldn't be able to do what he had to do. And she knew she couldn't stand to witness it- it scared her that the man she knew as so sweet and tender could be so fierce. She always had known it, and his incredible fighting was one of the most amazing things about him, but this was different. He had to be more than just strong, unrelenting and defensive here- he and Obi Wan, another person she didn't want to think of as menacing, were going to have to hurt and intimidate to get this information. Normally this wasn't the Jedi way, but like Obi Wan had said, when dealing with a Sith Lord withholding important information, it was "different protocol," and she knew he was right. In fact, as Chancellor it was up to her to approve this kind of action for the safety of the billions of innocents in the galaxy. Suddenly, none other than Anakin's own voice, a voice that warmed her after having not heard it for hours, interrupted her thoughts. However, the words were short and harsh.

"Why is she here," Anakin demanded angrily of Obi Wan. "She can't be here."

And Padme knew now that she would go in, at least for the moment.

"I'm here because _I _want to be," she said firmly. "I can't stand to just sit around waiting to hear what's happening to you. I want to be here to help you fight. I need to be."

And suddenly, she realized that no one was fighting. Anakin had already defeated the Sith, and was simply holding his green blade at the still silent Sith's throat. She then looked up into the blue eyes that were home to her, and she could see in them the shame and sadness that she should be there to witness what would come next.

"You've…you've already won," she said quietly, amazed at Anakin. He nodded, and looked toward Obi Wan.

"Anakin, you've done very well," Obi Wan nodded, truly impressed with his friend. It was a testament to how much Anakin had matured in these past years that he had been able to defeat the Sith and hold off killing him for as long as he did- waiting for instructions of how to handle the situation. "I'm so sorry that I-"

"Obi Wan," Anakin said, interrupting him. "I _asked_ you to go."

Obi Wan nodded silently, staring down at the cloaked Sith at their feet. "I can handle it from here, if you want to-"

"No, this is _my_ burden, and you know it," Anakin interrupted, and he knew that Obi Wan agreed. "But, could you give us a minute?" He asked, his eyes gesturing towards Padme.

"Of course," Obi Wan nodded, igniting his light saber and taking over the sentry over the Sith. Anakin put away his light saber and stared for a minute at the Sith, before slowly turning to Padme and pulling her into the hallway.

"What I said before," he said softly, caressing her cheek softly with his hand. "It's not that I don't want you with me. Or that I don't value your help, because you've literally saved my life many times, it's just that-"

"I know, Anakin," Padme nodded, falling into his arms as he hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her head. "I understand."

"But I want you to hear it from me," he said, pulling away from her just slightly so he could look into her eyes. "I love you too much to let you see me so menacing, so intimidating. I don't want you to get that image in your head and forget who I really am."

Padme looked up into his blue eyes, and saw his vulnerability, his true fear that she might ever reject him. "Anakin, I love you more than anything," she assured him warmly. "I know you better than anyone, and I would never forget how sweet, and tender you are with me, and the children. I would never give up on you, you should know that. I didn't give up on you, I didn't judge you, even when you yourself flirted with the dark side. Because I knew that wasn't really you, and you have proved a hundred times over how good you are, how dedicated you are to peace and defeating the Sith. I understand, really I do."

Anakin smiled, and kissed her tenderly on the lips, lingering, not wanting to have to go back to what awaited him on the other side of the door. She smiled, and began to turn away, when he pulled her back and kissed her passionately, refusing to let her go. Finally, he pulled away from her just far enough to mutter, "I love you."

"I love you too," she smiled, intertwining her fingers with his. "And I'll go, and the next time I see you there had better not be any more living Sith in the galaxy. As Chancellor, I demand it. And to be political for a second, please inform me of anything you learn, and the moment this is over, so that I can assure the Senate we are finally at peace."

Anakin smiled widely, holding on to her as she turned to walk away and kissing her hand, then reluctantly letting her go and barging back into the room.

"Now," he said powerfully, right in the Sith's face. "You _will_ talk."

"Has he said anything?" Obi Wan asked, as he and Anakin circled the Sith, light sabers raised. The Sith's arms were restrained so that he could not use the Force, or Sith lightning, and his light saber was discarded on the floor.

"Nothing," Anakin informed him, glaring angrily at this creature who had caused him so much pain and difficulty in his life.

"How did Palpatine escape?" Obi Wan asked casually, staring into the red eyes in front of him. When he garnered no response, he forcefully pulled off the cloak of the Sith to reveal a human with dark hair and sunken features, somewhere in between his and Anakin's age.

"Ah, so you are a human," Anakin commented. "That's good, because we're human. We know what hurts," he said menacingly, as he and Obi Wan still circled the Sith. "How did he escape?" Anakin pointed his light saber at the neck of the Sith, close enough so that he could feel it start to burn his skin.

"I don't know," came the response, in a hoarse voice eerily similar to Palpatine's.

"I don't believe you," Anakin taunted, as Obi Wan now put his own light saber up to the Sith's neck. "Who are you?" He demanded, staring into the Sith's eyes.

"My name is Darth Plaegus," the Sith spat back.

"That's not possible," Anakin argued. "Darth Plaegus is a legendary Sith, who's own great power became his demise."

"That's only a myth my father created to warn me against ever trying to overthrow him," Darth Plaegus responded harshly.

"Palpatine was your father!" Obi Wan shouted incredulously, as he and Anakin eyed each other warily.

"Yes, why do you think that I hate you so much, Anakin Skywalker," Darth Plaegus spat. "My father only wanted you, and I knew he was willing to kill me if you would be come his apprentice. He was only using me, and I knew it."  
"Why would you follow his path then? Why become a Sith, instead of helping to overthrow him?" Anakin wondered genuinely.

"I believe in the Sith," Plaegus shot back, eyes blazing. "You Jedi scum don't know what's best for the galaxy. I intended to overthrow my father, despite his warnings. I could have too, with my clones, as well as the children I raised to lead them."

"They were yours?" Anakin asked, he and Obi Wan again staring at each other in disbelief.

"Of course, do you think the old order of the Sith would have bothered to deal with so many followers?" Plaegus spat. "It was _I_ who took the time to go to Camino and order the troops, pretending to be Master Sypha Dias. And it was _I _who recruited the children to be raised as leaders of my army to overthrow my father. But of course, when he saw what I had done my father took control of them, and ruined everything by using them to soon to attack the Republic. I had their loyalties, and he made them doubt us both, which is how the children, the only ones left over, came to be helping _you_. Those with me today are my most loyal followers, more than Sidious ever had. But I needed an apprentice, before I could overthrow him, which is why I tried to get you."

"_You_ were the one who kidnapped my children?" Anakin asked, and Obi Wan had to restrain Anakin through the Force from killing Plaegus.

"Yes, but once again my father took over that plan too, right in front of my face he tried again to seduce you with the dark side, though I knew full well the whole time that were he to succeed, he would kill me." The bitterness and hate was obvious in the Sith's tone, and Anakin actually felt himself starting to pity him.

"But if you didn't help him escape from prison, who did?" Obi Wan demanded.

"I told you, I don't know how he got out, but I will tell you this- it ruined everything I had planned. He completely took over my efforts. When I shot at your ship, I was putting my last plan to overthrow him into action. Then, of all people, the one I had always been compared to and pitted against my whole life defeated my father instead of me. It completely ruined my plan when he engaged you- I knew he would not succeed in turning you, and of course, you escaped with your family and everyone was safe again. My camps had been revealed, thanks to him allowing all of you to escape, and my followers became loyal to the Republic, because he treated them terribly, made them doubt the ways of the Sith. They had already begun to doubt us when he tried to use them four years ago to take over the Republic. The clones would follow orders blindly, but these children were unaltered, and knew when they were being treated unfairly. He ruined my clones, and then turned even the children against me. Everything he did was wrong, and I knew it would fail. But then, when you killed him, I was left with nothing- no last resort, no followers, no way to carry out my plans. And so I had to take matters into my own hands and come here alone, with just my most loyal followers, who will never betray me. I had to get here before the Senate could vote on the problem- I knew that if I succeeded in turning any Jedi at this point, the uproar would be so big the camps would be forgotten momentarily and I would have time to rebuild. But then, again, _you_ of all people were right here to meet me. And now, I suppose, my father was right- you _were_ stronger," Plaegus spat. "But it doesn't matter now, because you're too late."

Anakin and Obi Wan stared at each other in shocked silence. This explanation of the events of the past several years was completely unexpected and unpredictable. Nothing could have prepared them for this- so much more had been going on in the galaxy than they could have ever imagined. When the Chancellor and the Council found out about this, no one would be able to believe it. No one had ever been aware Palpatine had a son, and it certainly seemed this man was telling the truth. Suddenly, Plaegus' last words registered in their brains.

"Too late?" Anakin yelled angrily, "What do you mean, too late for what? _For what?_" Anakin and Obi Wan pressed their light sabers farther into Plaegus' neck.

Plaegus eyed them eerily, a sadistically gleeful expression on his face. Anakin and Obi Wan stared at him quizzically, when suddenly Obi Wan understood.

"Anakin, take it away from his neck!"

But it was too late. Plaegus pushed his neck into the sabers, decapitating and killing himself.

"NO!" Anakin yelled passionately, sinking to his knees. "No, no, no!"

"We have no time Anakin," Obi Wan said quickly. "We've got to get everyone out of here."

"What?" Anakin asked, genuinely confused, as he stared at his old Master.

"Damn it!" Obi Wan yelled. "I knew he had broken far too easily. I should have known that wasn't all the information he had. Sith!"

"What are you talking about?" Anakin asked, still confused.

"Anakin, we didn't even have to do anything to him, and he told us everything? No, that can't be. Obviously, his final threat was founded- he did withold information, the most important of all. Anakin, we have to assume that he's done something to this building," Obi Wan said, pulling Anakin back up to his feet. "Do you have a com with you?"

"No, don't you?" Anakin asked quickly, suddenly understanding Obi Wan's rush.

"No," Obi Wan cursed himself. "We've got to hurry."

With Force enhanced speed, they ran desperately through the dank basement corridors. Finally, they began to see color again, and Anakin breathed a sigh of relief as the approached the main hall. As they ran towards the mass of people huddled scared in the front hall, security surrounding the Chancellor and her family, on high alert, Anakin noticed sensed something was very wrong. He couldn't register at first what it was, but he soon realized that he heard the smothered buy distinct sound of fast beeping.

"Everyone, get down!" He yelled, jumping over his children and Padme, just as a Thermal Detonator exploded in the main hall.


	27. Chapter 27

**Ch. 27**

For a minute, everything was silent. Before she had even known what was happening, Padme had found herself tackled to the ground by Anakin, along with the twins, thinking only about how much she hoped their fragile selves hadn't been crushed. The next minute, a huge explosion met all of her senses, and then everything was dark and silent as the one hundred or so bodies in the room held their breath, hoping that they were still alive.

Padme opened her eyes and looked around, but could only see smoke around her. She felt Anakin's body still over her, half on top of her and half on her side. Normally this feeling meant love and security as they slept peacefully next to each other, but the fact that he hadn't immediately begun to ask if she and the twins were already stopped her heart. Unable to move because of his weight on top of her, she gently tried to slide out and prop herself up, looking desperately for her children.

"Momma?" Said a small, scared voice, and Padme felt a wave of relief rush over her as she felt wriggling at her side and blue and brown eyes stared up at her.

"What happened?" Leia asked, as Padme noticed that she and Luke were huddled together, clinging to each other.

"Are you all right angels?" She asked, her voice much softer and weaker than she had intended.

"Daddy protected us," Luke said quietly, as he and Leia wriggled out from under their father's torso. "Is he ok?"

For the first time, Padme allowed herself to look at Anakin. She had been avoiding it, not wanting to know, but for her children she knew she had to be strong. Her heart caught in her throat as she saw blood trickling from his face, wounds all over him from the debris caused by the blast.

"Chancellor, Chancellor, are you all right?" Padme heard, before she could even check on Anakin. Security had immediately rushed to her side, checking on her as she sat numbly and unresponsively. As bodyguards surrounded her, she faintly heard them urging her to get out of there, but she didn't move, she simply sat staring at her husband, unable to feel or react to anyone.

"Let me through, let me through!" she heard a hurried voice say loudly and insistently from in front of her. "Is everyone all right, is everyone all-"

Padme looked up slowly when she heard the voice stop short, only to meet the familiar eyes of Obi Wan, normally so happy and reassuring. But now she could see the deep sorrow and empathy in them as he stared at her, her legs still buried by Anakin, her small children looking at her full of fear.

"Chancellor," Obi Wan said quietly, as he shared a nervous glance with her.

"We need to take the Chancellor to safety," Said her bodyguard annoyingly. She wanted to tell them to go away, but she couldn't form the words.

"Leave her alone," Obi Wan commanded. "And get out of my way!" Even though the bodyguard tried to remain around her, Obi Wan, in what seemed a surprising show of strength to the bodyguard even though he was one of the most renowned Jedi of all time, pushed them all out of the way, and was on his knees next to Padme. He immediately put his finger on Anakin's neck to check his pulse, and reached out with the Force as strongly as he could to call his friend to him.

"He's alive," Obi Wan said firmly, but the strain in his voice told Padme that her husband was badly injured. "We need to get him to the medical unit, right away," Obi Wan instructed to no one in particular. "Call the healers, immediately."

"Is daddy ok?" Luke asked again, as, in a show of maturity beyond his years, he put a reassuring arm around his sister.

"I hope so, my young Padawan," Obi Wan said to him, not even trying to hide the gravity of the situation. Obi Wan sent as much Force healing power as he could to Anakin, then stood up to check on the others around him. Anakin was a Jedi, and thus less vulnerable then others, and though Obi Wan wanted more than anything to remain with him he knew it was his duty to check on those with no power of their own. However, as he turned to walk away he felt a hand pull his backwards softly.

"Obi Wan," came Padme's voice, her eyes looking up at him full of sadness and the need for reassurance- or at least for simply the truth.

"Padme, I-" Obi Wan cut himself off, staring at her. He took her hand and pulled her up, supporting her reassuringly as she fought to keep herself upright.

"It's really serious, isn't it," Padme asked gravely, looking down longingly at her husband.

"He's hurt badly, Padme," Obi Wan nodded. "But… you know as well as I do that if anyone can pull through a situation like this, it's Anakin. You won't lose him Padme," Obi Wan tried to sound confident. "I promise you." He hugged her tightly, then turned to check on everyone else.

Padme sunk back down on her knees, staring at the Anakin's unconscious body. Once again, he had risked his own life to save someone else's- and this just made it all the worse that he was like this. Padme realized in that moment how much she'd come to rely on his reassurance- in even the most difficult of times, Anakin could make her feel better, feel hope and confidence. But now, she had to be strong on her own, for her children, and seeing him like this didn't help. She was transported back to the day the twins were born, when Anakin was also laying unconscious in front of her, as she awaited the arrival of a baby. She looked down at her stomach, praying that this child would know the incredible man that was its father.

Suddenly, the small hands of her already born children tugged at her gowns, and she turn and pulled them to her, never wanting to let them go again. As they sobbed, truly frightened for the first time in their lives, Padme let herself, for once, shed her politician's demeanor and cry in public out of her fear.

"Padme," cried a worried yet relieved voice from her side. Looking up, she almost fainted with relief at seeing Sabe alive and well, rushing to her side.

"Thank the Force you're all right," Padme said softly, as Sabe knelt down and put a reassuring hand on her back, unable to hug her due to the small children buried in their mother's arms.

"Oh, Padme," Sabe uttered as she noticed Anakin. "He'll be all right, he has to be…"

"Padme!" Came another voice, and a wave of relief rushed over Padme as she saw her mother and father, as well as Sola, Darred, and their girls, rushing over to them. They sported some bruises and scrapes among them, but no one was seriously injured.

"Oh thank the Force," Padme sighed as she embraced her family.

"Oh my…what happened?" Jobal asked as she noticed her son-in-law. "Padme, I'm so-"

"Just- take them home," Padme begged, interrupting, knowing that people telling her they were sorry only meant they didn't feel a lot of hope, and she refused to hear that. Anakin would pull through, she just knew it.

"Of course," Jobal muttered, sharing a worried glance with Ruwee. Hugging Padme one last time, they pried the twins away from their mother and picked them up, hugging them tightly.

As the rest of the family walked away, Sola turned back to her little sister. "Padme," Sola said, her voice full of empathy. "Let me come with you."

Padme looked into her sister's eyes and nodded gratefully as Sola embraced her. She, Sabe, and Sola sat down next to Anakin as bodyguards surrounded them, Padme rolling her eyes in frustration but enduring it, knowing that her arguing would only make matters worse. Soon, Obi Wan came running back over with two healers who began to load Anakin into a medical speeder.

"Sabe, thank the Force," Obi Wan said, pulling her to him in a quick but reassuring embrace. Both restrained the urge to hold each other for a longer amount of time, painfully aware of Padme's situation. Instead, they turned their attention to her, reassuring her as they all walked to the speeder. Soon they were rushing back to the temple, Padme holding Anakin's hand tightly the whole time.

Their arrival at the temple caused quite an uproar, no one having yet been informed of the explosion. However, as the Jedi they passed in the halls saw Master Skywalker unconscious and badly hurt, news traveled quickly. By the time they reached the healing ward the entire council was waiting for him, and Jedi of all ages huddled outside trying to see what was going on, and confirm if the rumors were true.

"What happened?" Mace asked as the Force signatures in the room all sank into sadness at seeing Anakin in this state. He and Yoda had headed immediately back to the temple after seeing Obi Wan, thinking it wise to inform the council of what was happening an send more Jedi over to help.

"Thermal detonator," Obi Wan said quietly, looking intensely at them.

"Is he all right?"

Obi Wan looked back at Padme, Sabe, and Sola, and then back at Mace, who nodded, understanding that silence was best in this situation. The healers began to wheel Anakin into an examination room, but first Padme pulled them back and leaned down to kiss Anakin, then stepped away.

"What of the Sith?" Mace whispered, pulling Obi Wan to his side.

"He is defeated," Obi Wan assured him, then remembered the information the Sith had given them. "By the way, Anakin and I discovered some very interesting things- but they're to be told at another time."

Mace nodded in agreement, as Yoda hobbled over to them.

"The Chancellor, be here she should not," Yoda said sadly, as many of the council members nodded- they felt the Chancellor's grief and fear deeply.

"Perhaps not, but how can you ask her to leave?" Obi Wan said empathetically.

At that moment, a healer stepped out of the room, and everyone was silence.

"He's unconscious because of a severe blow to the head," the healer informed them. "As you probably all knew due to the bleeding from his forehead. It seems a piece of glass got in there, and there is other debris that hit him as well, but… I think he will be all right," the healer said, fairly confidently, and Padme's heart began to beat with hope again.

"Can I see him?" Padme asked hopefully, tears in her eyes.

"Not now, Chancellor," the Healer denied sadly. "We're still working on him."

Padme nodded, biting her lip, as Sola and Sabe put their arms around her. Padme wanted to much to be able to tell Anakin how much she loved him, right in that moment. She wanted to be able to express to him how amazing he was that he had jumped over her to protect her from the blast. That that glass in his head would have been in hers had he not been there. And most importantly, how much she and their children needed him, and how much the Jedi and the galaxy needed him. But the healer had said he would be all right… so she would be able to tell him, right?

…………………………………………………

An hour later, they still waited to hear news of Anakin's progress. Padme was now sitting on a bench outside his door, Sabe and Sola's arms around her reassuringly. Obi Wan stood with his arms crossed in front of him staring straight ahead- he hadn't said a word the entire time. Though Obi Wan didn't let his emotions show, and none of the women were force sensitive, they all could tell that for maybe the first time, Obi Wan was extremely and seriously worried about Anakin. And it only confirmed that knowledge when, as the door to Anakin's room opened, Obi Wan was the first to rush to the healer's side.

"He'll be all right," The healer said, now full of confidence. "We removed all of the foreign materials and patched up his wounds. He's still sleeping but he'll be awake soon- you can go in now."

And again, Obi Wan was the first to jump at these words, rushing in to the room to see Anakin. Padme was right behind him, as they knelt at either side of him, Sola and Sabe standing behind Padme and Obi Wan, respectively. Padme kissed Anakin's cheek, his temple, his lips, and caressed his cheek softly and lovingly. A few minutes later, though it seemed like hours, Anakin's eyes fluttered open.

The first thing he saw were Padme's eyes, full of love, staring down at him in anticipation. He smiled, laboriously moving his hand to squeeze hers reassuringly.

"Hi Angel," he said, a little confused as to where he was. He then noticed Obi Wan, Sabe, and Sola, standing above him, and his brow furrowed as he grew even more confused.

He pushed himself slightly up on the bed, still looking around him confused. Where were they? Why were they here again, watching him wake up? Suddenly, he remembered- the explosion in the Senate. Oh Force, had he gotten to his family in time? Well, Padme was safe, but where were the twins? That look of fear and sadness in Padme's eyes did not bode well for a favorable answer. Tears sprung to his eyes as he looked around him, trying to locate the missing members of his beloved family. He tried to sit up, moving erratically, and Padme calmly put her hands on his arms to hold him down, softly.

"Shhh, Anakin, it's ok," she said soothingly. "Don't try to move, let yourself rest."

"But there was a thermal detonator, in the Senate, I tried to-"

"Shhh, yes, there was an explosion, but we're ok," she assured him, kissing his cheek. "We're all ok. You're the one we were worried about."

"The twins?"

"At home with my parents and family," Padme said soothingly, gently massaging his hand.

Anakin let himself relax a bit, smiling at her. "What happened?"

"You tried to sacrifice yourself for others, again," Padme teased lovingly. "Will you stop doing that? You really might get yourself killed one of these days."

"Even if I died, knowing you were all alive would be enough," Anakin said lovingly to her, and then turned to Obi Wan so that he knew he meant him as well.

"It wouldn't be enough for me," Padme told him, stroking his cheek.

"Anakin, the last time you sacrificed yourself for me," Obi Wan said slowly.

"And I don't know if I properly thanked you, but almost losing you again made me just want to tell you… how much I- I value your-"

"I know," Anakin said warmly, smiling at Obi Wan. "Don't get all awkward on me, ok?" He teased, and Obi Wan smiled.

"Well, he certainly seems all right to me," Obi Wan joked, as they all laughed.

"Well when can I get out of here?" Anakin asked impatiently, as they all just continued to laugh at his predictable behavior.

"Rest for at least a couple of hours," Obi Wan instructed. They all knew that trying to make Anakin stay any longer was futile.

"Why don't we leave you two alone," Sabe suggested, pulling Obi Wan away. Sola nodded and followed them out.

"Wait," Padme said quickly, just before the door shut. Sola's head popped back in to the room. "Call home," Padme pleaded. "Tell them he's all right, especially the twins, please tell them we'll be home soon." Sola smile and nodded, then closed the door behind her.

Padme sat up on the bed next to Anakin, as he propped himself up further with pillows so that he was sitting up. Alone with him, her emotion suddenly bubbled to the surface, and tears fell from her eyes.

"What are you crying about?" Anakin asked softly, kissing the tears on her cheeks. "I'm all right, I've been through worse than this," he said, wiggling his mechanical fingers and smiling.

"I know but this time you weren't…you weren't _there_," Padme said, still crying though she felt silly. "Just seeing you like that, so helpless for the first time, I just-"

"Shhhh, it's ok, I know," Anakin said soothingly.

"See this is what I mean," Padme smiled, burying her head into his shoulder. "You always are telling me it's ok, but this time you weren't and I was so scared Anakin. I just cried there in front of the Senate- you know I have to be extremely worried to let that happen. The thought of losing you, I can't-"

"We've always known that that's a reality," Anakin said seriously. "For both of us- but it's the risk we took, for love."

"I know," Padme nodded. "I know we said that, that we'd have to be ready for that, I'm just… I'm just not."

"Well I'm here now," Anakin assured her. "And the Sith are gone- Padme I did it. I fulfilled the prophecy; now, now I can just be me and not the Chosen One anymore. Now we can have a little bit more peace and quiet, I promise you."

Padme nodded, smiling proudly at him, and ran her fingers through his hair. "I know you did. You're amazing Anakin, and I love you."

"I love you too, and our children, and our family, and even Obi Wan too," Anakin laughed, as Padme smiled at him. "And this one," Anakin said, pointing to her stomach. "When's it coming again?"

"Six more months, Anakin," Padme laughed. "You'll just have to be patient."

Anakin pouted, "I love it already, anyway."

"So do I."


	28. Chapter 28

**Ch. 28**

**Hi!** This takes place six months later, at (you guessed it) the birth of the new Skywalker. This will be the last chapter of this story, and then (if you're still interested) I think I will write a third installment taking place when Leia and Luke are about 18 (around (a little younger than) episode 5 age). As to what happened in between- not very much action, which is why it's worth it to skip ahead:

After the explosion in the Senate, security found and disabled several more detonators that would have collapsed the Senate and killed hundreds- Plaegus' last attempt to destroy democracy, knowing that he would probably die in the process and that finding an apprentice was no longer possible. The Senate and Jedi worked together to free all of the children in the Sith camps, and also helped them to see that the ways of the Sith were evil. They helped the children to establish good lives for themselves.

Padme's family celebrated with her the day after her birthday (everyone was too tired and just incredibly grateful to be alive and together on the actual day) and then went peacefully back to Naboo. Padme promised she would inform them the minute the baby arrived and be in better touch with them from then on.

The Jedi were able to move on to other more routine matters in just a few months, with a few sentries still out to constantly be checking for any other Sith or Sith followers.

The Senate tried all of the followers who helped Plaegus to infiltrate the Senate, all are now in prison but Jedi visit them often to try to help them see they were brainwashed and try to find better possibilities for them.

The Chancellor won reelection, and though her critics claim it was out of sympathy for what had happened, she was reelected with a phenomenal majority. The Senate was able to also move on to new issues after a few months.

The only issue still hanging over everyone's heads is the question of how Palpatine escaped. Padme made sure to investigate all guards of the detainment cells and to pass laws to make the cells more secure- though she and everyone else knew the problem wouldn't arise again unless another Sith presented itself.

Han Solo and Chewbacca, after being awarded medals as heroes, disappeared again. They went off on their own with one other boy Plaegus had recruited, one who had helped the Jedi and been a friend to Han when they were both on Kashyyyk- Lando Calrissian. The three accepted only one thing as a reward- one of Anakin's ships, an old, beat up ship called the Millennium Falcon. Padme and Anakin insisted on giving them credits to live on, at least until they could find some kind of work, but they refused. Oh, they did accept one other gift- a drawing Leia made for Han to remember her by. They left soon after the explosion in the Senate and no one saw them again (Until Leia's about 18…).

Obi Wan and Sabe…got married, after seeing Padme almost lose Anakin they both realized that they too were vulnerable and should be together before it was too late. Regarding children, they are considering having one in the future but for now dealing with the Skywalkers is enough for both of them, as they are more quiet, refined types and tend to enjoy watching their best friends attempt to deal with their children.

Leia, Anakin, Luke, and Obi Wan adjusted to life as Padawans and Masters, though Obi Wan did have to face Luke and Leia asking him about where their baby was coming from and how it got there, and why they had to wait six more months to get it. Obi Wan didn't tell them anything, but he did give an earful to Anakin and Padme about responsibility as parents and not trying to subject him to situations that made him uncomfortable. Anakin and Padme were highly amused.

Things are quiet now, and the twins and their parents and friends anxiously await the birth of the new baby. Yoda and Mace have a bet on whether it's a boy or a girl, both claiming they can sense it with the Force though they both know sensing gender through the Force in unborn babies isn't possible.

Obi Wan and Sabe have agreed (somewhat reluctantly) to watch the twins for the night so Anakin and Padme can enjoy their first night alone in exactly nine months:

"This is wonderful, Anakin, I still can't believe you made this," Padme complimented her doting husband, enjoying the meal he had prepared for her. It was truly phenomenal, and, though she really hadn't believed him at first, he was so adamant about the fact that he had actually cooked it that she had no choice but to believe him.

"You really like it?" He asked excitedly, heaping more onto her plate as she laughed.

"Don't, Anakin, I've gained enough weight as it is," she giggled, eating the second helping anyway.

"You've only gained the weight of our child," Anakin argued, walking around the table and setting his hands gently on her shoulders. He began to massage her back tenderly as she looked up at him lovingly. "It only makes me love you more."

"You're amazing, Anakin," Padme said genuinely, enjoying the soothing feeling of his massage. "Especially for convincing Obi Wan and Sabe to take the twins for the night."

"Well, technically Luke should be living with him _anyway_, so I'm going to play that guilt card every so often," Anakin joked. "I mean, we take care of his Padawan all the time, he can take care of mine once or twice."

Padme smiled up at him. "Yes, Obi Wan's Padawans tend to be very difficult to handle, too," she teased. Anakin nodded, completely missing the comparison to himself as Padme laughed at him lovingly.

"Not as bad as my Padawan, though," he smiled. "She's even more of a troublemaker than her brother." He leaned down and kissed her lips lightly.

"We'll just have to see if they can live up to your example," Padme mumbled into his lips.

"I don't know, I set the standards very high," Anakin said, half serious. He tugged her hands, pulling her to her feet and embracing her fully. He looked at her adoringly, absolutely enamored of her, and of his own happiness. He didn't know how the little slave boy had ended up with such a wonderful, perfect family, but he knew how fortunate he was to have ended up that way. And the fact that Padme would soon bring another member of his family into the world elated him- he couldn't wait to meet his new child. He loved Luke and Leia so much; he couldn't wait to have someone else to love just as much. He leaned in and kissed Padme deeply, reveling in the peacefulness of this moment. "You look beautiful," he told her honestly, staring into her eyes.

"Now I know you're just lying," she teased, squeezing his hand. "Look at me!" She gestured to her pregnant stomach.

"I see it," Anakin laughed. "I love it. I'm so glad to finally be alone with you," he told her sweetly, intertwining his fingers with hers and pulling her towards the couch.

"Me too," she agreed, beginning the now difficult trek over to the other side of the apartment. As they walked suddenly side by side, Anakin felt Padme's hand dig into his own, gripping it so tightly she almost broke the bones. He looked over at her, startled to see a grimace of pain on her face.

"What is it?" He asked worriedly, rushing to let her lean on him fully. "Are you ok? What's wrong? Is it something about the baby? Are you going to be all right?"

Then, to his surprise, Padme laughed. "Anakin, yes it _is_ about the baby, but nothing's _wrong_," she smiled up at him, amused.

"You mean… you mean, it's coming?" He asked, suddenly panicking, realizing he had no idea what to do. "So we should… we should go to a doctor?"

Padme laughed, as Anakin began to rush around the apartment doing nothing in particular, breathing heavily, a look of utter perplexity plastered on his face. "Yes, we should go to the medical unit. Why are you so nervous, we've had two children already and you're acting as if you've never had a baby before."

"No," Anakin said quickly, stopping short his pacing and looking at her fearfully. "No, no. _You've_ had two children before, _I_ was unconscious, remember? I missed it, and this is the first time I get to see my child be born and I don't want to screw it up, but, I…I don't know what to do!"

Padme's heart melted with love for him in this moment- he was so earnest, he really wanted things to be perfect and he didn't know at all what to do. It was true, he had completely missed the birth of the twins, and his upbringing at the temple had not informed him very much about the birthing process, that was certain. She took his hand, and squeezed it gently and reassuringly, pecking him on the lips.

"Luckily for you," she said calmly. "I'm the one who has to do most of it. Your instincts will kick in, I promise. You're already a wonderful father, you'll be fine, don't worry."

Anakin took a deep breath and tried to calm down, thanking her silently with his eyes for her reassurance. Suddenly, he felt her hand tighten in his again, and that same expression of pain passed over her face. This was followed by her water breaking, which scared the wits out of Anakin.

"What happened?" He yelled suddenly, looking around him fearfully. "Are you all right? Is the baby all right? We need a healer, now!"

He began to rush away, but she pulled him back. "Anakin, don't worry. That's what's supposed to happen. We're fine, but we should go now, ok?"

"That!" Anakin asked incredulously. "That's what's supposed to happen? Obi Wan _so_ did not teach me enough about this…"  
Padme smiled at him, shaking her head amusedly. "It's ok, let's just get going now, ok?" She was growing a little impatient, knowing she had plenty of time but wanting to have medical support soon.

"Ok, well… do we need anything? What should I bring? Some clothes for you? Something for the baby?" Anakin asked, walking into their bedroom.

"There's a suitcase on the bed," Padme told him calmly, and he soon returned successfully with it.

"How are you so calm and prepared?" He asked honestly, staring at her.

"Well I have had nine months to plan for this…and some of us actually plan events ahead of time," she laughed at his impetuosity.

"Ok, well, then… let's go!" Anakin began pulling her out the door, as she stood still staring at him. "What?"

"Well I assumed we weren't going to _walk_ there," she laughed, pointing at the speeder docked outside on their balcony and looking confusedly into the hallway through the door he had opened.

"Oh," Anakin nodded, shutting and locking the door and turning around. "Right."

"Maybe I should drive…" Padme mused as Anakin jumped in the drivers seat.

"No, you need to relax," Anakin instructed, pulling her into the passenger seat.

"That was my point," she said quietly, as he pulled away from the apartment.

In half and hour Padme lay on a bed in the healing ward of the temple, Anakin attentively at her side. He held her hand reassuringly, staring confusedly at the ice chips he had brought her.

"Anakin, they explained to you why I can't have water," she interrupted his staring, as he looked shyly up at her.

"I know," he admitted, frowning. "So, anyway, when will this baby be coming? We've been here for almost an hour now, you know."

"Anakin, it can take hours and hours," she informed him, stroking his cheek. "Sometimes a day, you never know. We just have to wait."

"A day!" Anakin grumbled impatiently. "I can't wait that long."

"Well, you're going to have to," she laughed. "Ah!" She yelled, as another contraction pulsed through her. Her grip tightened on his hand; he had conveniently sat ti the side of her where his mechanical hand would be most reachable.

"I'm well equipped for this," he mused, staring at his mechanical hand nonchalantly as Padme gritted her teeth at him through her pain. "Don't you think? I mean, think about the fathers who have two normal hands. I mean, this one can feel but not intense pain, I mean why would I need to feel that? It's made of metal…maybe I should invent some kind of metal hand for fathers during the labor, don't you think that would make the process a lot easier?"

"Oh, yeah," Padme spat sarcastically, grimacing angrily at him as he looked up at her innocently. "_Much_ easier," she added tempestuously as the contraction subsided, and Anakin nodded, completely oblivious to the situation.

"So when do you think this baby will be here?" Anakin asked again, moving the ice chips around the bucket they were in using the Force.

"Hey, shouldn't you maybe give Obi Wan a call and tell him we're here?" Padme suggested enthusiastically.

"I don't want to leave you alone like this," Anakin said worriedly, inspecting her carefully as she lay on the bed in front of him.

"Trust me, Anakin, I think I'll be ok for a few minutes," she said forcefully, and he nodded.

"Ok, I'll let them know," he agreed. "_Don't_ worry, I'll be back soon."

"Right," Padme said shortly, flashing him a quick smile. She sighed as he left the room, half annoyed, half amused at the situation. She loved him with all her heart, and of _course_ he would be like this…plus, didn't all mothers get really annoyed at the husbands during labor? So she wasn't being particularly mean, was she? No, she told herself, it was fine. Plus Anakin was completely oblivious anyway, so it didn't matter. She loved Anakin and she knew he was only trying to be supportive and loving- and she could deal with that.

She did hope that maybe Sabe or Obi Wan would be inspired to come keep them company, though.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

_Six hours later…_

"I think it's time," the healer informed them, and the hours of extreme aggravation with Anakin flew from Padme's memory as she saw the look of excitement and love in his eyes.

"It's time Padme!" Anakin jumped up excitedly, as the furniture he had arranged on the ceiling fell to the floor with a crash. "Oh… right," Anakin said sheepishly. "I almost forgot I was still holding that up there."

"Uh, it's… all right, Master Skywalker," the healer assured him, looking at him quizzically.

"He… gets bored," Padme explained for him, rolling her eyes lovingly as the healer nodded, giving them a very strange look.

They wheeled her into a delivery room, Anakin running along behind. Padme was kept amused during the journey by Anakin's constant attempts to sneak up to her side, constantly foiled by people walking by them in the other direction. Finally, he gave up having to awkwardly back out of the narrow passage between her bed and the wall, and just ran behind enthusiastically, shooting her reassuring smiles that only further revealed how terrified he was of this process.

Before Padme even realized it, she was in the delivery room being told to push, still laughing lovingly at Anakin.

"You're amazing Padme," he said reassuringly, as she squeezed his metal hand tightly. "You can do this, I promise you."

"Push, Padme," the healer instructed, and she did, letting out a painful cry. "I can see the head now," the healer informed them. "Master Skywalker, would you like to come see?"

Even amidst the pain of the moment, Padme couldn't help but be amused as Anakin shifted his feet awkwardly a couple of times, unsure of whether to go look or to stay by her side. Finally, he shot her a sheepish but loving glance and jumped to the healer's side to see his child's head crowning.

"Do you see it?" the healer asked, but Anakin just stared silently. He turned very white, and suddenly Padme and the healer were concerned for him. He backed away slowly and returned to Padme's side, regaining his composure.

"That's…so weird," Anakin said, still shocked from the experience.

"Push Padme," the healer instructed, as Padme shot Anakin a sympathetic glance-turned-grimace as she pushed.

"But kind of amazing," Anakin said in retrospect, dancing back and forth between Padme's head and feet. "It's coming!" He yelled. "Keep pushing, it's coming! Oh, ew…"

He jumped back to her head, trying to restrain himself from fainting. He then jumped back to her feet, just in time to see the final push.

"Woah," he smiled awkwardly, looking proudly on his new child and Padme.

"It's a girl," the healer said, as Anakin nodded vigorously to Padme. "Would you like to cut the cord?" The healer asked him, holding the scalpel towards him.

"What… what cord?" Anakin asked, stepping fearfully backwards. At this, Padme laughed out loud.

"The cord that connects the baby to me, Anakin," she told him tiredly, leaning her head back on the pillow weakly.

"It's… connected?" He asked, suddenly turning bright red at his ignorance.

"Here," the healer said, placing the scalpel in his hands and guiding him towards the umbilical cord. As she helped him cut it, Anakin just stared at Padme, perplexed, as Padme laughed tiredly at the expression on his face. "We just have to clean her up and check on her, and you can have her back right away," he healer said, walking the baby girl away from them as other healers began to work on her.

"Are you feeling fine, Chancellor?" Asked one of two healers who came to help Padme.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you," Padme nodded. The healers with her soon finished up and stepped back.

"What does she look like?" Padme asked tiredly as Anakin rushed to her side and kissed her cheek.

"Really, really weird," he smiled proudly. "She's covered in goo."

"That's what kept her alive, Anakin, in my stomach," Padme told him lovingly.

"Good, I'm glad we don't have a goo-baby," he nodded seriously, and Padme laughed.

"You'll see, she'll be beautiful when they bring her back," Padme assured him warmly.

Anakin turned to her and looked deeply into her eyes. "She's beautiful already," he said firmly.

"Here she is," a healer told them, bringing them their baby wrapped in a soft blanket.

"I can't believe I missed that part with Luke and Leia," Anakin said fondly as he clasped the baby in his arms and held her in front of Padme. "Look at her, she's amazing."

"As I remember though, you forced yourself out of your own hospital bed to come into our room about a minute after they were born," Padme smiled, stroking her new baby's cheek.

"Like I could have missed this part," Anakin said, staring into the eyes of his new daughter. "They will be so excited when they see her."

Padme nodded, as she and Anakin stared in awe at their new baby. "She needs a name," Padme thought out loud.

Anakin looked seriously into the eyes of his daughter. "Taryn," he said simply, looking eagerly to Padme's eyes for approval.

"I love it," Padme agreed.

…………………………………………………………….

"May we come in?" Asked the kind voice of Obi Wan from outside of the door.

Before he got a response, Luke and Leia were running into the room jumping onto their mother's bed. "Mommy, mommy, mommy!" They yelled, as she smiled at them lovingly but tiredly.

"Luke, Leia," Anakin said sternly. "Speak quietly, your mother needs to rest. No jumping on her."

"Sorry Mommy," Luke said, hopping off and beginning the search for the new baby.

"Sorry Mommy," Leia echoed, contenting herself with running in circles around her father.

"Come on in," Anakin laughed as Sabe an Obi Wan entered.

"Oh, she's beautiful," Sabe said, looking lovingly at the baby in Anakin's arms.

"She's _in_ here?" Leia asked incredulously, looking up at her father in disbelief.

"I've been holding her the whole time, Leia," Anakin laughed confusedly at his children, Luke now running over to check.

"Well you're so far up there, we can't see anything," Luke rolled his eyes, as the adults in the room laughed.

"Here," Anakin said warmly, sitting on the bed and encouraging Luke and Leia to climb carefully up next to him.

"Congratulations," Obi Wan said, putting a hand on Padme's shoulder.

"Thanks," Padme smiled up at him.

"She's so tiny daddy," Leia examined her new sister, placing a finger on the little nose in front of her.

"Careful," Anakin said tenderly, and Leia immediately pulled her finger back. "You can touch her, just very carefully," Anakin instructed.

"Can I give her a kiss?" Luke asked.

"Yes, you can give her a kiss," Anakin smiled. Luke and Leia in turn kissed their new sister's forehead.

"She's so soft," giggled Leia, as Luke nodded.

"You were too, when you were just born," Padme told them, as Leia leaned back into her mother, who kissed the top of her head.

"Were we that little too?" Leia asked, as Luke crawled up to snuggle with his mother too.

"Littler," Padme told them. "Because you were twins, and you were born very early."

"Even littler than that?" Luke asked incredulously.

"Much littler," Obi Wan agreed.

"You saw us when we were just born?" Luke asked, staring up at his Master.

"I witnessed you being born," Obi Wan laughed at the memory of how he had gotten virtually stuck in the room, and mistaken for the father in Anakin's absence. He shared an amused smile with Padme and Anakin.

"Wow," Leia said in amazement.

"When does Taryn get to come home?" Luke asked, again studying his new sister.

"In a few days," Anakin told his children, looking on them lovingly.

"I can't believe you have three children now, Anakin," Obi Wan laughed, watching his old Padawan fondly.

"Neither can I," Anakin agreed, staring suddenly in disbelief at the children surrounding him and looking back lovingly at Padme. The fact that he had created these children with Padme truly was amazing- when he and Padme had gotten married he couldn't even have imagined this, but now, here it was- and it was perfect.

**The End**

I hope some people are interested in seeing another installment in this series, at the time of Episode 5! Thanks for all the great reviews, please let me know what you thought and I hope you enjoyed it!


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